RWBY: Omni Force
by NegaiFreak
Summary: As Ruby Rose and her friends have finally arrived in Mistral with members of the Omni Force, things start to unravel in the world of Remnant! Can they bring about a change that could determine a better fate than the one Salem has in store! ADAPTATIONS OF VOLUMES 5 & 6! PLEASE READ, REVIEW, AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, ENJOY!
1. Welcome to Haven

**Well folks, it's finally time to debut one of my long awaited stories. Hey everyone! After a big break from FanFiction, I'm finally back to put up the leading chapter to my 50** **th** **story, "RWBY: Omni Force"!**

 **This is going to be my first adaptation in a while, so I'm excited to bring the RWBY characters to life in my stories alongside the Omni Force members. Now do note that after this first chapter, there won't be many following it for a while. The reason for that is because I wanna square away certain story elements such as a couple of new Omni Force members being here and other things. This chapter will summarize events that have happened in Volume 4 of the Rooster Teeth series with the Omni Force involved, so you have no need to worry about any kind of plot holes.**

 **That said, I do not own Rooster Teeth, the RWBY characters, or any of the properties listed throughout this story. Also, I'm planning on starting things out a little differently before we go right into the story itself. This is sort of a test run to see how things will turn out for another story, so don't be alarmed.**

 **Anyways, are all of you ready to get this fic started? I sure am! Let's get straight into "RWBY: Omni Force"!**

 **RWBY: OMNI FORCE**

 _A lot's happened between me leaving home with Jaune and the others for Mistral. Things that are crazy get even crazier, and I learned that thanks to whatever I did back at Beacon, I'm now the target of this Salem person and whoever she's sending after me. It's really, really weird, but I guess that's how the world works sometimes, right?_

 _There are a lot of people I don't wanna lose. Jaune, Ren, Nora, Uncle Qrow, and my team of course. By now, you probably already my story of how we got to Mistral, but I did leave out a few things._

 _While we were on our journey, we ended up getting attacked by a guy named Tyrian, one of Salem's followers. My uncle came in and saved us along with Erza Scarlet, but he got poisoned by Tyrian before we managed to drive him off. That night, he told us everything he could about what was going on with the Four Maidens, the Relics, and Salem. It was a lot to take in all at once, and not everyone was totally convinced at first…_

 _Aside from that though, Erza told me that she was watching out for us ever since what happened at Beacon. Apparently, Gaara made sure that me, Weiss, Blake, and Yang all had Universal Trackers attached to us so that the Omni Force could follow our movements. It hurt to get it off…_

 _Erza said that the Omni Force wanted to keep a close eye on Remnant in case something like the Fall of Beacon happened again. But more importantly, I was invited to be a squadron leader of the Omni Force! Isn't that super exciting?!_

 _Oh, um, sorry. Got carried away there… Heh, heh…_

 _By the time we finally made it to Mistral after defeating that Nuckelavee Grimm and getting Uncle Qrow all better, Erza officially appointed me as the sixth squadron leader of the Omni Force! While we've been waiting for my uncle to recover, she's taking me out to recruit members for my team! Pretty soon, we could be unstoppable! I mean, recruiting new members has gotta be a piece of cake, right?_

 **X**

Jaune Arc paced nervously outside the door to his friend's room. It had been almost a week since Team RNJR had arrived in Mistral, and two days since Ruby Rose had left with Erza Scarlet to search for members for her squadron of the Omni Force. He was not worried about whether she would be safe, but rather when she would be back. With her uncle having recovered completely from the poison he acquired, the entire group in the house they were staying in was ready to go to Haven Academy and meet with its headmaster. After taking a moment to think, the blonde haired teen knocked on the door twice.

"Ruby, are you in there?" he asked, hoping he would receive an affirmative response.

"Nope, it's just me," another feminine voice replied from within the room, causing him to sigh in realization. Aside from the famous requip user joining their party to Mistral, a few of her team members had also come along with her, having assisted her and the others in defeating the Nuckelavee back in Kuroyuri. The one who had answered the huntsman-in-training's question was Starlight Glimmer, who was undressing as she had taken off her black vest and turquoise t-shirt, only in her black underwear and sports bra as she was readying a new set of clothes on top of her bed.

"Uh… are they gonna be back soon?" the one outside the room questioned out of concern.

"I dunno," the girl inside answered, lifting her bra off of her chest and over her head, "Maybe they're going after more than one member," she suggested, tossing the clothing onto the dirty pile upon the divan before placing her hands onto her underwear, "I mean… Erza got me on the team pretty quick," she pointed out, removing the last of her clothes.

"I know…" the tall teen began to respond, grasping the knob to the door and twisting it to make it open, "but it feels like it's been way too-" He stopped talking at the moment he realized he had walked in on the former unicorn as she was still changing, wearing nothing but her sparkling beanie upon her head.

"Hm?" she uttered, turning back to look at him as she blinked. In an instant with a loud yelp, Jaune went back outside the room, slamming the door shut as his face became a mad red.

"SORRY! SORRY! SORRY!" he repeated while shutting his eyes.

"Uh… what's wrong?" the female inside asked, arching an eyebrow in confusion, "Did you _wanna_ talk in person… or…?" she started to question, scratching at her cheek in confusion before readying a new set of underwear she had prepared.

"W-Well…" the student stuttered, "I w-was gonna ask if… they'd be back soon…" he said, wiping the sweat off of his forehead.

"Okay…" Starlight uttered, still perplexed by his reaction as she put on her pink sports bra and panties, "but why'd you leave the room?" she asked, getting a pair of ripped, black plants over her legs with a black belt and a light blue, kite-like design upon the right leg.

"B-B-Because… you were… uh…" the blonde haired teen stammered, continuing to blush as he put his right hand over his face.

"Scarlet called," a gruff, male voice chimed in, catching his attention as he immediately perked up to see a familiar figure trotting towards him, "She and the kid are gonna be back by tomorrow, new member or not," he explained, being Smoker as he loomed over the stuttering huntsman-in-training.

"Sm-Smoker!" he yelped, standing up straight, "Uh… that's great to hear!" he exclaimed happily with another stammer.

"Hmph," the former marine scoffed, "Not so great when you really think about it," he pointed out, causing him to blink in confusion.

"What do you mean?" he questioned, arching an eyebrow.

"Smoker, did you say only _one_ member?" the counselor asked on from inside the room, having put on her new turquoise tank top that was cropped around the navel, "I thought Erza said she was gonna take Ruby to meet people who _wanted_ to join…" she noted as he slipped on a pair of pink and light blue striped arm bands and black, fingerless gloves.

"Yeah, that was the idea…" the Devil Fruit user grumbled as he leaned against the wall, letting out a frustrated sigh, "But the first one they found ended up being a real piece of work…" he mentioned, folding his arms over his chest.

"Trust issues?" Jaune guessed.

"That couldn't be it," Starlight chimed in, exiting the room as she opened up the door, "All these people that Erza said they're visiting are guys that already know about the Omni Force," she told them, not noticing the blonde haired teen staring at her new outfit in wonder, "It doesn't make sense why one of them wouldn't be okay with joining…" she mentioned.

"Uh… I like your new look…" the male beside her complimented as he sheepishly rubbed the back of his head.

"Thanks…?" she uttered in confusion, grinning a little at him as he blushed.

"It's not about knowing the Omni Force," Smoker chimed in while staring at the wall opposite the one he was leaning against, "It's more about whether or not the person wants a little girl in charge," he muttered, "And believe me, the one she's tryin' to recruit ain't one to take orders from anybody 'cept for a few," he added with another exasperated exhale. The two listening shared a worried glance with each other, wondering what challenges the aspiring huntress was facing in her quest to recruit new members.

"GUH!" Ruby Rose grunted as she tumbled across the floor of the ring as she dropped her Crescent Rose. She managed to regain her footing, sliding to a stop at the very edge of the arena, looking down below to see the numerous spikes surrounding it. "Eep!" she yelped, sweating madly as she looked back out at her opponent, Boa Hancock. A few days earlier, she and Erza Scarlet had arrived at the maiden island of Amazon Lily, hoping to recruit the infamous Snake Princess onto the Omni Force. Instead, they learned that while she would be more than willing to be a part of the team, she was not ready to submit herself to be under the command of a young adolescent like the girl.

Though the requip user vehemently made her voice very clear to the island's ruler, the newest squadron leader decided that she would have to earn the potential recruit's trust by showcasing her own skills in combat. However, she had not expected the woman herself to challenge her. The Kuja Pirate warriors all cheered from the stands around the stadium, eager to see their leader triumph over the girl.

"Hm…" Gloriosa hummed from atop the structure at the very peak of the staircase leading down to the arena. Alongside her were Boa Marigold, Boa Sandersonia, and the scarlet haired woman, as the latter of the three was evidently anxious about the outcome of the battle.

"Who would've thought our sister would be the one to accept a challenge…" the youngest of the Gorgon sisters noted with a curious grin.

"It's not like her to be so driven to do so," her green haired sibling agreed as she nodded, having her arms folded over her chest.

"I think our beloved Snake Princess is at a crossroads with her future…" the elder concurred after a moment of deep thought, "Will this young girl help to shape it for her?" she wondered. In the meantime, the Fairy Tail wizard clenched her armored fists nervously.

' _Ruby…_ ' she uttered inwardly, keeping her eyes on the battlefield below.

"Huh…" the short haired girl breathed out as she stood up, glancing to see her scythe lying down upon the floor several yards away from her, sitting right at her opponent's feet, "All right then…" she grumbled, getting into a lunging stance.

"Hmph," Hancock scoffed, putting her right index finger up to her lips as she breathed deeply, "Slave Arrow!" she exclaimed, blowing a kiss to create a large heart out in front of her face. She then pulled the formation back with her right hand and popped it like a bubble, unleashing hundreds of projectiles with sharp, heart-shaped heading straight for her foe. However, she gritted her teeth and dashed forward in an instant, much to everyone's surprise as it looked as if she burst into rose petals, being a red blur that raced away from the oncoming arrows and grabbed the weapon lying before the infamous Pirate Empress.

"She's fast…!" Sandersonia hissed out of surprise. Ruby raised up her armament in both of her hands, preparing to slice past the person before her. She easily jumped up to avoid her though, coating both of her legs in black as she span down.

"Perfume Femur!" she bellowed, about to slam her right foot onto the squadron leader's head. She reacted quickly and pulled the trigger of her weapon, blasting herself back to narrowly evade the attack as it struck the ground, causing it to crack massively upon impact. Seeing the result made the huntress-in-training grimace in fright, sliding to a stop as she wiped the sweat off of her forehead.

' _So she's got Haki like Sabo, huh?_ ' she inwardly inquired in a rhetoric tone, taking a ready stance once more, ' _I can't keep relying on my Semblance if it means I run low on Aura…_ ' she told herself, cautiously stepping forward as her adversary stood upright, staring out at her as the black coating had left her legs.

"Quick on your feet, but not very bright I see," she pointed out, catching the girl's attention as she blinked in surprise, "For someone like you to end up as a leader of such a group as the Omni Force," she continued, leaning backwards, "it's repulsive when comparing you to my dear Luffy!" she declared as it seemed like she was looking upwards.

"And there she goes again…" Gloriosa muttered, while Erza tilted her head in confusion.

"I don't care what you think of me compared to others!" the short haired girl yelled as she clutched the handle of her Crescent Rose tightly, "I owe it to those people on the Omni Force who've helped me and my friends…" she recalled, remembering the instances during the Fall of Beacon where her comrades were all put in mortal danger, with some not making it, "The least I can do is become someone who _can_ save worlds!" she roared, readying her weapon as she aimed the muzzle forward and pulled out a magazine from beneath her cloak.

"Don't make me laugh," the Love-Love user muttered as she blew another kiss, creating a smaller pink heart upon her index finger, aiming it towards her foe, "Pistol Kiss," she said, firing the formation like a bullet from a gun. Fortunately, Ruby deflected it by spinning her scythe, loading the new ammo into it as she cocked the shaft back. The requip user took notice of the lighting-like symbol upon the magazine, grinning in realization.

"So that's her plan…" she noted, causing the two Gorgon sisters and the elder to glance over at her in confusion. Dodging and deflecting more heart-shaped bullets blasted her way, the new squadron leader dashed around her opponent, moving even faster than before as she took a quick glance through the scope of her rifle.

' _One shot should be all it takes to stop her in her tracks…_ ' she began through thought, getting a clear target of her enemy's legs, ' _and I know just where to aim!_ ' she declared inwardly, resting her left index finger upon the trigger. Hancock took notice of her sliding to a stop, firing a shot that struck in massive explosion of dust and sparking electricity, causing the female-only audience to all gasp in surprise aside from Erza.

"No way…" Margaret uttered from afar, sitting beside Sweet Pea, Aphelandra, and Kikyo as their eyes were all widened. Aiming her armament behind her down towards the floor, Ruby shot herself up, spinning it around as it was aimed for the veil she created.

"This is how strong I am!" she shouted, swinging the blade into the cloud and slicing through it, revealing nothing there.

"Was she trying to cut her head off?!" Marigold questioned out of shock, sweating madly.

"The girl must realize that our Snake Princess can use Haki to defend herself…" Gloriosa said after a moment of thought, "but she missed," she added, getting the requip user's attention as she gasped in astonishment.

"How pitiful," the infamous Pirate Empress muttered, causing her foe to widen her eyes in disbelief, "You're compassionate, but blinded by your own overconfidence," she stated as she suddenly threw her left leg out from the cloud and kicked away the high caliber sniper scythe from her enemy's hands.

"Ah!" she yelped, about to go and get it until she was struck in her torso by her right foot, letting out a wad of saliva from her mouth.

"Ruby!" the Fairy Tail mage yelled out, seeing her go flying through the air before landing upon the floor hard and tumbling across it before coming to a stop on her right side.

"Ow…" she uttered out in pain, wrapping her arms around her stomach.

"You're lucky I wasn't using my powers just now," Hancock noted as she brushed back her long hair, "Otherwise, you'd be crumbling away," she mentioned, starting to trot off.

"Ergh…" her former foe grunted as she sat up, hearing the cheering audience of Kuja warriors.

"Way to go, Snake Princess!" one yelled excitedly.

"That little girl had nothing on you!" another shouted.

"Ruby!" a voice cried out, catching the girl's attention away from the crowd as she saw the requip user flying down from the high viewing section, utilizing her silver repulsor gauntlets to carefully stabilize herself in midair before landing, "Are you all right?" she asked in concern, kneeling down on her right leg and placing her right hand onto the girl's shoulder.

"Yeah, I'm good…" she responded with a somewhat forced grin, taking notice of the Love-Love user walking by without even giving her a look, "Huh…" she sighed in defeat, giving off a somber expression. Seeing that made the scarlet haired woman growl angrily in frustration, standing up as she was prepared to go after the infamous Pirate Empress, but was stopped at the moment her left wrist was grabbed by the huntress-in-training's left hand.

"Ruby?" she uttered in surprise.

"Even if _you_ beat her in a fair fight, she won't wanna listen to me…" she pointed out, letting go of her, "I have to be the one to earn her trust," she stated firmly as she stood up.

"Well that's easier said than done…" Erza admitted, seeing the three Gorgon sisters all heading off with Gloriosa.

"Yeah…" the short haired girl agreed, "But we can always try another time," she pointed out reassuringly with a giggle, making her comrade grin as well.

 **X**

Later that evening, the Fairy Tail mage was dressed in a set of pink pajamas that had maroon crosses upon them, having her hair done into a ponytail as she approached Marigold and Sandersonia within the island palace.

"Thank you for your hospitality," she said in gratitude with a bow to them, "I must imagine it wasn't easy to find us anywhere to stay," she pointed out to them.

"No, we were more than willing to house some of Luffy's friends!" the younger of the two sisters responded, holding her hands out in a placating manner.

"Especially since both of you are women," the latter mentioned, causing them to all chuckle in agreement for a moment.

"Your sister…" the requip user began, catching their attentions, "was she expecting someone like myself to be in command when she would join?" she inquired to them.

"Hmm…" the greenish haired of the two hummed, folding her arms over her chest, "Honestly, she was really excited about joining before meeting that little girl…" she confessed, glancing out at the veranda to see the girl dressed in her pajamas of a black tank top featuring a heart-shaped Beowolf design on the chest and long white pants decorated with pink roses. She stared out at the setting sun in the distance, leaning against the wooden railing.

"When she had heard word of Luffy's marriage and child, we would've thought she'd go on a rampage…" the Snake-Snake: Model King Cobra user mentioned as she looked on at the aspiring huntress as well, "Instead, she was so happy to hear that he was able to find a life away from being the Pirate King," she told Erza, who smiled.

"It's not like she'll need to follow Ruby's orders on a moment's notice…" she pointed out, tilting her head to the side, "If anything, she'll be allowed to do what she wants so long as she's not causing too much trouble for us…" she explained to the sisters.

"That's true," Marigold agreed, "but I think our sister has matured over time," she said as she glanced down at the floor for a moment, "She understands that not everything has a happy ending, even for someone like her," she explained with a somewhat somber expression.

"And she wants to be by Luffy's side, supporting him and his friends any way she can," Sandersonia added. Outside still as the stars were beginning to show up in the sky above, the young girl looked on with her head lying against her arms, letting out a deep breath.

"Have you already eaten?" a familiar voice asked, catching her attention as she looked to see Hancock approaching her, now dressed in a red blouse with an orange sash tied around her waist, while her legs were barren.

"Y-Yeah, I did…" the aspiring huntress stuttered, looking back up at the starry sky, "Just… taking in the sights…" she said as her eyes sparkled.

"Heh," the infamous Pirate Empress chuckled, "You really are a fool," she muttered, causing her to perk up and look over at her, "Here you are trying to have me join your group," she continued, "but you act like a little girl that can't hope to catch to someone like myself," she told her rather sternly, "If you're going to be a part of the same group that fought off the full force of the World Government, you need to be better," she stated in a firm tone.

"Yeah…" the short haired girl agreed, glancing down, "I've been telling myself that time and time again after what happened at Beacon…" she admitted, leaning her back against the railing and looking up at the stars, "When Erza first told me I'd be the next squadron leader of the Omni Force, I thought she was joking," she confessed with her right hand upon her cheek, "I guess Gaara recommended me or something… I don't really know…" she grumbled, "But…" she kept going, turning around and looking out at the city below them with Kuja warriors roaming about, "if there's one thing I really wanna do as a new squadron leader…" she started to say, "it's to protect all the beauty in the world like this," she stated, grinning a little, "Because to be honest," she continued as she lowered her head slightly, "the beauty in my world's kinda fading away," she said. Her words brought somewhat of a look of astonishment on the warlord's face, but she managed to let off another chuckle.

"You really are an interesting one…" she admitted, causing her to smile back at her, "But what makes you think I'd join your team above anyone else's?" she asked seriously as the wind rushed by, making her hair sway through it.

"I don't know," Ruby replied, gripping the railing, "Before anything, I have to win your trust to make you want to join me," she realized, "In order to do that, I need to be better than I am now," she declared firmly.

"…Very well then," Hancock responded after a moment, making her perk up in surprise, "You don't have my trust nor my help for the moment…" she started to say, "but I will be accepting a place on the Omni Force," she stated, causing the aspiring huntress' eyes to light up in excitement.

"R-Really?!" she stuttered in exclamation, "You're gonna be on my team?!" she asked gleefully.

"Eh…" the Snake Princess uttered as a drop of sweat rolled down her head, having to recompose herself by clearing her throat, "It's not like I have a choice in the matter," she pointed out, folding her arms underneath her chest, "I would've liked to have joined sooner, but it seems things weren't prepared for my arrival…" she grumbled as she turned her head away.

"Woohoo!" Ruby cheered, suddenly leaping out and embracing the woman happily, nuzzling her head against hers, "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" she repeated in gratitude as she smiled, "I promise I'll become someone you can really trust!" she declared, keeping a firm hold on her.

"Y-Yes…" the infamous Pirate Empress stammered, cringing all the while, "You can let go of me now…!" she demanded almost passively. In the meantime, both of her sisters and Erza watched on with smiles on their faces, glad that things were somewhat coming together.

 **RWBY: OMNI FORCE**

The next day, the two squadron leaders had arrived back in Mistral with news of their recruitment. Though the warlord had rejected to join them in their quest, she was officially appointed as the fifty-second member of the multiversal team. In the meantime, the group in the city was prepared to head up to Haven Academy, walking through a stone brick tunnel illuminated by translucent lanterns.

"The city of Mistral..." Qrow Branwen uttered, leading the group of seven behind him down the path.

"Ugh!" Nora Valkyrie groaned loudly, "It's about time!" she shouted, sounding quite annoyed as they trekked along, " _Whose_ idea was it to walk again?" she questioned.

"Well, we did face many obstacles," Lie Ren pointed out to her in response, "Broken airships, destroyed settlements…" he started to list off.

"Oh, and, you know," Jaune chimed in, "all those people and monsters that tried to _murder_ us," he mentioned in an upset tone, causing Starlight to giggle a little.

"Pfft, we were fine," Ruby retorted with a wave of her right hand, now dressed in her regular clothes as she looked over at her uncle and smiled, "Only one of us almost died," she mentioned, causing him to perk up and smile back at her.

"Hey," he replied out of sarcastic offense, seeing her wide grin afterwards. In the meantime, the orange haired girl gave off a skeptical glance towards her crush with her hands at her hips.

"Hey," he said upon noticing, making her giggle.

"How much farther to the school, Branwen?" Smoker asked out of annoyance, interjecting on the conversation.

"Almost there," Qrow replied as he looked back, "But I figured I'd take you and the kids on the scenic route," he mentioned, causing the former marine to roll his eyes out of annoyance. They then approached a pair of large, wooden double doors, stopping for a moment. The leading adult of the group opened them, flooding the tunnel with sunlight. Blinded for a moment, the rest of the team shielded their eyes until they could see clearly.

"Whoa…" Starlight uttered as her pupils shrank in astonishment. Ruby ran out onto the massive platform before them, which appeared to double as an elevator, as she stopped at the railing to gaze out over the city before her in wide-eyed awe.

"Wow!" she exclaimed as everyone else her to take in the view of the buildings and stone stairways perched on mountains, "This… is… _awesome_!" she yelled happily.

"It's beautiful…" Erza, who was dressed in her Heart Kruez armor, added in agreement, causing the girl to perk up slightly as she remembered her talk with Hancock last night. Down below, they saw large crowds of people are going about their day, walking around, talking, and buying merchandise at the marketplace.

"It's certainly something," the Plume-Plume user noted as he viewed the sights.

"Oh my gosh, look at all the weapons!" the short haired girl exclaimed, noticing a kiosk selling some firearms and swords.

"Vendors here'll sell you just about anything…" her uncle mentioned, "whether they should or not," he added to the group.

"They really made the most out of these mountains," Jaune noted, seeing the buildings all around them.

"No kidding," the counselor concurred, amazed herself as she smiled giddily.

"Every inch," Qrow pointed out, "You should stay away from the lower levels," he advised to the others, getting their attentions, "The higher up you go, the nicer it gets," he told them.

"And _we_ are going up!" Nora exclaimed, pointing upwards with her right index finger.

"Indeed we are…" the requip user responded as she grinned.

 **X**

 _As you may know, since my time away from Beacon… a lot's happened with my family and I… I wanted people to know that it was important to me that my school needed support after what had happened. But instead, I screwed up… I made an embarrassment of myself in front of a crowd of people and almost hurt someone. If it wasn't for Law… I don't know what could've happened… aside from losing my heiress status to the Schnee family name._

 _While at my manor in Atlas, I ran into him and Danny Fenton. They agreed to help me escape and find my sister out in Mistral. It's going to be a long, difficult journey, but now that I've got the summoning ability mastered like Winter, we should all be fine._

 _Let's just hope the journey itself goes smoothly…_

Soaring over a large lake, the Atlesian cargo airship carrying the stowaways sailed along smoothly with streaks in its wake.

"So… how much farther?" Weiss Schnee asked from end of the pilot's box of the ship, leaning against the wall with her arms crossed. Both of her Omni Force allies were there as well, standing at opposite ends and looking out the windows to see the setting sun on the horizon.

"We're in the home stretch now," the pilot responded with his hands at the wheel, "No more stops from here to Mistral," he told the trio, "Sorry for the long trip," he apologized, "Keeping us off the radar's been harder than I thought," he admitted to them, "Lots of air traffic around northern Anima," he added.

"Is there a chance we got spotted?" the half-ghost hero asked out of concern.

"No, we're good kid," the man replied, glancing over at him, "Hope you're not feelin' jittery either," he mentioned with a grin.

"It's fine," the ponytailed girl reassured for her friend, "I… just hope we haven't been a burden…" she confessed out of guilt. The pilot just chuckled at her words.

"You and your money are more than welcome on this ship, kid," he responded.

"Besides," the captain of the Heart Pirates chimed in, catching her attention, "our job's to help you out," he told her with a smirk.

"Exactly," Danny agreed, making her grin happily. Suddenly, they all caught the sound of static coming off of the ship's radio, which its pilot immediately picked up on as well.

"What the…?" he uttered in confusion, reaching over to adjust a slider on the device, evening out the wavelengths the appeared upon the screen.

"Is everything okay?" Weiss asked worriedly.

"I don't know…" the pilot responded honestly, "We're still over Lake Matsu. Shouldn't be picking up broadcasts this far from Mistral," he pointed out to her, "Someone must be close," he realized, keeping a firm grip on the wheel.

" _Mayday, mayday!_ " a female voice shrieked in a panicked tone over the radio, causing both the half-ghost and the former heiress to perk up as they heard it, " _We are a small passenger flight, and our Huntress is_ _down_ _!_ " she yelled, " _We aren't equipped to deal with this!_ " she screamed desperately.

"Oh man," the man at the wheel uttered in realization.

" _The Grimm hit us four hundred klicks north of the southern shoreline!_ " the woman explained loudly through the transmission, followed by the sound of an explosion that made the girl's eyes widen, hearing a gasp afterwards, " _Get them off us! If anyone can hear this- Ah!_ " she begged desperately, crying out before the radio cut off abruptly. The pilot quickly turned it off of, turning the ship to the left. Both teenagers walked over to him and grasped onto the handle upon the ceiling at his right side.

"We're going to help them, right?" the female of the two inquired to him.

"What? _No_ ," he responded defiantly, "I'm trying to _avoid_ them," he pointed out seriously.

"But… they'll die," Danny mentioned, developing a frustrated expression upon his face.

"Look, if we picked up their transmission," the pilot began, "I'm sure someone else did, too," he noted to them, "Besides, this is a cargo ship," he added bluntly, "She's not much good in a fight," he admitted as he held onto the steering wheel tightly, "I just wanna finish this job and get home," he stated firmly as Law looked on from afar, resting the sheath of his sword against his right shoulder, "Sorry, kids," he apologized, "My ship, my rules," he said in a blunt tone. Weiss closed her eyes for a moment before gazing out the windshield as the ship turns to the right, continuing to fly over the lake.

"Can't save everyone in the world," the Op-Op user pointed out, catching the attentions of his allies, "You gotta learn to live with that," he advised to the both of them.

"Huh…" the half-ghost hero sighed deeply, "Yeah," he concurred, while the ponytailed girl just nodded slightly.

 **X**

Back in Mistral, Starlight was the first one to jog onto the campus grounds of Haven Academy, which seemed to mimic Japanese architecture with its buildings.

"Huh," she uttered with a grin, placing her hands at her hips and looking upwards at the structures as her squadron leader trotted up to her left, "Guess the Friendship School's got some design competition…" she commented, giggling afterwards. Moments later, the two of them led the entire group into a courtyard. Amidst the chirping of birds, Ruby came to a stop and wiped a tear from her left eye as she smiled. Jaune came over and placed his left hand onto her shoulder reassuringly as she eyed the main building ahead of them.

"Huh," she sighed happily, "We made it," she said, sounding proud as her uncle sauntered in from behind, glancing around to see no one else in sight.

"Well, wish we had all day to take in the sights," the counselor began to the others, getting their attentions, "but we've got someone to meet," she pointed out seriously, causing everyone to nod in agreement before they continued on their way. Smoker then noticed Qrow still looking around rather cautiously, narrowing his eyes in suspicion.

"Something wrong?" he questioned.

"Huh…" the caped man sighed as he trotted past the former marine, "Not yet…" he muttered, causing him to blink in confusion while following after him. Moments later, the group was gathered inside the empty hallways together in search of the headmaster.

"Hello?" the short haired girl of the group called out in greeting, hoping for a response, but received none, " _Hello_?!" she cried out even louder, accidentally causing Starlight to flinch as she was right next to her.

"Maybe try _louder_?" Nora suggested.

"Yeah, _really_ …" the former unicorn muttered as she rubbed her right ear in agony, causing the new squadron leader to sheepishly chuckle towards her sympathetically.

"There doesn't seem to be anyone here," Ren noted as he glanced around.

"Well, I guess school isn't really in session right now," Jaune mentioned to get the group's attention, "Maybe that's it," he suggested as he looked to his left.

"I would have assumed a teacher would still be on the premises if a _Relic_ is hidden here…" Erza noted, placing her hand upon her chin out of suspicion.

"Bet they're all on break this time of day," the Plume-Plume user chimed in as a potential answer.

"No, this isn't right…" Qrow suddenly responded, causing them to all perk up in surprise, "Come on," he beckoned.

"Hey!" Smoker yelled, chasing after him. The others followed suit, seeing the two men hurry ahead.

"Wait for us!" Ruby shouted as they all picked up the pace to catch up with them. Soon, all eight of them arrived at a pair of wooden double doors, with the bearded one of the group coming to a stop in front of them. He quickly drew his Harbinger from behind his cape, extending the blade out.

"Get ready," he advised to the others, enticing them to all draw their own weapons as his niece set hers in its sniper form, Nora set her Magnhild in its primary grenade launcher state, Ren prepared his StormFlower as the blades extended out, and Jaune readied his Crocea Mors by unsheathing the sword and activating the shield, "There could be trouble…" the man in front of them admitted, with the former marine grabbing the hilt of his jitte, Erza summoning forth a single sword in a flash of light within her right hand while aiming her left one forward as the repulsor at her palm buzzed, and Starlight activated her magic, gaining a light grayish heliotrope skin color with a pair of horse-like ears and a long ponytail that reached down to her ankles. A light turquoise aura enveloped her hands as she took a ready stance, prepared to face whatever was in front of them. Qrow then brought up his right foot and kicked the door open, revealing a middle-aged man with a mane of gray hair and a beard who appeared to be about to open it himself. He had a tanned complexion with brown eyebrows and dark brown eyes. He wore a brown great coat with a matching mantle, which had cross emblems on each side. Also, he donned a white dress shirt under the coat, a western neck tie and dark brown slacks with dress shoes.

"AH!" he screamed with widened eyes, throwing his hands up into the air.

"GAH!" the members of team RNJR minus the long haired one shrieked as well, somewhat astonished.

"What the…?" the counselor uttered, standing down as she developed a confused expression upon her face similar to the one of the mellow teen next to her. Standing on just a foot with his own eyes wide, the unkempt man of the group suddenly glanced down, losing his balance and falling over in a rather comical yelp. The man before them seemed to do the same, fainting briefly onto the floor.

"What the hell just happened?" Smoker asked as he put his armament back onto his back, while everyone else lowered their own weapons, giving off somewhat dumbfounded expressions towards who they had just met.

"Uh… Professor Lionheart?" Ruby guessed as her uncle sat up. The apparent headmaster suddenly gasped and sat up, having to catch his breath.

"Qrow!" he shouted rather angrily, "For crying out loud, you nearly scared me half to death!" he yelled as he sat up slowly, placing his right hand over his chest. Starlight deactivated her magic as her heliotrope skin, pony ears, and ponytail all disappeared in a flash of light, while Erza had her sword vanish as she lowered her left hand. A growl was then heard from the younger of the men lying upon the ground as he stood up.

" _Me_?" he uttered in confusion, arching his left eyebrow slightly, "Why weren't you waiting for us at the entrance?" he asked him seriously.

"Huh?" he uttered in surprise as he blinked, pulling out a pocket watch from his coat to check the time, "Oh, right," he realized sheepishly as the little clock ticked in his hand, "Apologies," he apologized, "I guess time slipped away from me…" he admitted, shoving the object away into his coat.

"You're joking…" his friend bluntly responded as he slouched a little out of disbelief, which Smoker took notice of.

"Where is everybody?" Nora asked as she and her fellow classmates put their weapons away safely, seeing the headmaster stand back up.

"Ah, you must be the students Qrow mentioned," he noted to them.

"Yes, sir," Ruby responded with a small chuckle, "Ruby Rose," she introduced as she saluted loosely.

"Jaune Arc," the blonde haired teen to her left greeted.

"Nora Valkyrie," the chipper girl introduced while having her arms out stiffly at their respective sides.

"Lie Ren," her crush greeted politely, placing his hands behind his back.

"Heh, heh," the professor chuckled, taking notice of the Omni Force members as well, "And you must be a part of the other group Qrow had mentioned, correct?" he inquired to them.

"Yeah," Starlight answered before her squadron leader could, "My name's Starlight Glimmer," she introduced with a simple bow.

"Erza Scarlet," the requip user greeted, "I'm one of the squadron leaders of the Omni Force," she mentioned to the man, who then glanced over at the former marine.

"Smoker," he merely said, causing him to arch an eyebrow in confusion, having expected to hear more, "Hey, that's all you're gettin' outta me," he stated firmly, crossing his arms as the bearded man chuckled again.

"A pleasure to meet you all," he responded to entire ensemble before him, "Leonardo Lionheart, at your service," he introduced politely, bowing slightly, "I'm afraid most of my staff is currently away until classes resume," he told them, causing his friend to tense up as his fists were clenched, "but-"

" _What_?" the legendary scythe wielder interjected, leaning in towards him to his shock, "Leo, you can't be serious," he pointed out somewhat angrily, "Who's guarding the Relic?" he questioned with narrowed, glaring eyes, stunning him greatly.

"Qrow, the children…!" the headmaster started to point out as he glanced over at the group of seven.

"Already know. I filled them in," he explained as an interruption to his retort, gesturing back towards them, "What do you mean your staff is away?" he asked as he pointed at him.

"You… filled them in…?" the professor questioned in response, letting the information sink in as he raised his left hand to his chin, glancing around somewhat nervously.

"So… is this not going at _all_ like anyone thought it would?" Nora asked Ruby, who put her right hand onto her left arm and gave off a somewhat somber expression.

 **X**

 _I guess my story starts from when I left Beacon after the attack. I wanted to keep my past away from my friends, but it ended up causing the worst possible thing to happen. People were killed, one of my friends lost an arm… all because of me... I was going back home… to Menagerie. But I never expected Sun to follow me, let alone Ben Tennyson, the guy in charge of the entire team Gaara and Yang are a part of._

 _When we got to Kuo Kuana, I finally saw my parents for the first time in what felt like ages… and then I learned that the White Fang was here as well. Corsac and Fennec Albain say that the splinter group of the Fang Adam's leading doesn't follow the way of the Faunus, but I can't believe them. At least, not after what they had Ilia do to my friend. If it wasn't for Sun and Ben getting my head straight, I don't know what I'd do after everything that's happened. But thanks to them, we're finally ready to make our move… and get the White Fang back to be what it was meant to be all along…_

A calm air had settled around the topiaries of the Belladonna household as stars brimmed the night sky. Though it was peaceful for the moment, it soon dissipated as Ghira Belladonna burst the front door open, stomping in angrily with Sun Wukong.

"Unbelievable!" he shouted in frustration.

"Total garbage!" the monkey Faunus yelled in addition, walking around the front room as well, while Kali Belladonna watched on from the front porch, somewhat dumbfounded by the pair's intersecting behaviors. Her husband then let out a growl, and he and the student turned to each other.

"We can't let them get away with this!" they exclaimed simultaneously. In the background, the chieftain's wife let off a smile.

"Well, at least you two can finally agree on something," she noted, catching their attentions as they looked over at her, then back at each other. The shorter of the two let off an awkward chuckle as he sheepishly rubbed his head, while the bulkier one glared slightly and growled at him with clenched fists.

"Guys," the voice of Blake Belladonna chimed in, getting their attentions as they looked to see her approach from the front porch alongside Ben Tennyson, "Everything's gonna be okay," she reassured firmly with a clenched right fist.

"Damn straight, Kit-Kat," the man beside her agreed, causing her to blink in surprise before blushing slightly. Both of her parents chuckled at the remark, while Sun just arched an eyebrow.

"Oh, so when _he_ gives her a compliment, he gets a laugh," he pointed out in offense, making the others look over at him, "but when _I_ say something nice about her, I… uh…" he tried to say, seeing the menacing glare developing on Ghira's face, "Never mind…" he uttered with another nervous and sheepish chuckle. A little while later, the cat Faunus exited through the door of her father's study, stepping out onto the balcony where an armored guard was waiting.

"Good evening, miss," she greeted as an address while turning to face her, "Can I get you anything?" she offered to her.

"Just a little time to myself, if that's alright," she replied somewhat anxiously.

"Sure thing," the wolf-eared female agreed with a nod, "Just call, if you need me," she advised, heading back into the study and shutting the door behind her.

"Huh…" the student sighed deeply amidst the sounds of chirping crickets.

"You need better security," a familiar voice suddenly said, alarming the girl as she turned to her left to see a masked Ilia Amitola drop down onto the railing. Ensuring her safety, she reached for the door, about to alert the guards to the intruder's presence. "Please!" she pleaded quietly with her right hand raised in a placating manner, "I-I just need to talk," she stuttered out in admittance. Her former friend slowly took her hand away from the sliding door, narrowing her eyes.

"How could you take the fall for them, Ilia?" she asked her, seeing her stand upright.

"Blake…" she uttered, sounding hurt by her words.

"Corsac and Fennec _blamed_ you," she pointed out in an upset tone, "We confronted them tonight, and they deny knowing anything and everything found on your Scroll," she explained, "Th-They talked about how _disappointed_ they were to hear that you'd sided with Adam…" she added with a stutter out of disbelief, "But you and I _both_ know they're guilty," she stated firmly.

"You can't prove _anything_ ," the chameleon Faunus argued, saddened and frustrated by her persistence.

"That Scroll might not have been enough to lock them up," she admitted after a moment of thought, "but it's enough to sway the Faunus here," she noted, "When we go public tomorrow, they're not going to stand for any of it," she told her confidently, "And neither should you," she advised to the ponytailed girl. She then reached her left hand up and removed her mask, revealing a solemn expression upon her face.

"Your plan isn't gonna work, Blake," she responded, looking over at her, "Please…" she started to beg, "just leave Menagerie before it's too late," she advised seriously. Staring at her in silence, the cat Faunus narrowed her eyes slightly.

"You're going to have to make me," she retorted in challenge. Ilia merely stared back solemnly, not saying a word for a moment.

"I know," she sadly realized, donning her mask once more and stepping backwards off of the balcony, dropping into the trees below. The student turned away angrily as her cat ears folded inward, gritting her teeth. After a moment though, her anger faded as she let out another sigh, taking on a saddened expression.

"Well, that was awkward," a familiar voice chimed in bluntly, causing her to instantly perk up as she saw Ben sitting on the couch behind her.

"DAH!" she yelped in surprise, clapping her right hand over her mouth, "Oh… you need to stop doing that…" she complained in a whisper as she moved her extremity down to her chest, making him chuckle, "Huh…" she sighed again, "How much did you hear?" she asked, turning to face him fully as he leaned forward a little.

"Enough," he answered, still grinning, "I get that she's an old friend…" he started to say to her, causing her to tense up slightly, "but as far as I can tell, she's an enemy," he pointed out.

"She's just… confused…" she argued, seemingly unconvinced by her own words, as was the Omni Force leader.

"We're gonna make this right, Kit-Kat," he promised, "And if we can get your friend to see the right side," he continued, making her perk up slightly, "well, you've got her back," he concluded with a smirk, "Just know that she's with the bad guys right now," he advised, "Don't go taking any chances with her," he added seriously.

"R-Right…" Blake stuttered in reply, grabbing at her right arm nervously.

"Huh…" the Biomnitrix bearer exhaled, "Everything's gonna be okay, right?" he inquired to her, causing her to instantly widen her eyes as she remembered saying the exact same words.

"Heh," she laughed, "Thank you, Ben," she said in gratitude with a smile, making him do the same. She then opened the door back into the study and went inside, leaving him alone on the balcony. He reached into the pocket of his cargo pants, pulling out his MPG and activating its center button by pressing his thumb against it. A holographic image appeared over it as he tapped a few icons, leading to him pressing one that said 'MESSAGES'. A hologram of his wife then appeared, holding their daughter in their arms.

" _Hey babe,_ " she greeted through the transmission, " _I know you're probably busy again and all… OW!_ " she yelped in agony, having her short hair pulled on by the giggling infant, " _Raya sweetie, please stop that!_ " she pleaded, causing her husband to chuckle, " _Ugh… I'd love it if she could drive you insane instead…_ " she grumbled as a solemn expression came across her face, " _Just… come back as soon as you can, okay?_ " she recommended, " _Our daughter could really use two good parents to look after her than just me…_ " she admitted. Seeing the laughing image of his child in her mother's arms made the Biomnitrix bearer smile as tears began forming in his eyes.

"Yeah…" he concurred after a moment, wiping his eyes with his left arm, "I'll be back soon…" he promised before the image vanished into thin air.

 **X**

Back at Haven Academy, everyone had gathered in the headmaster's office, as he sat behind his desk, still contemplating the news he had recently received.

"I have to say, Qrow," he began to the famed huntsman before him, "this all seems very reckless," he pointed out, "even for you," he mentioned in a disgruntled tone.

"No," he responded bluntly, "reckless is leaving one of the Relics completely unguarded," he argued angrily with crossed arms, "It's not checking in with Oz for ages!" he pointed out as he waved his right hand.

"There was _nothing_ to check in _about_ before the fall of Beacon," Leo retorted in frustration, "but since that day, Mistral has been in chaos!" he bellowed, standing up from his chair with clenched fists, "Vale wasn't the only Kingdom to suffer that night," he noted to the others, "Everyone was watching," he said, "Every house in every Kingdom saw that poor girl ripped to pieces," he mentioned, causing Ruby to look away, upset as it seemed as if was about to cry from the very memory, "saw monsters crawling over the city, Atlesian Knights attacking citizens…" he listed off, making Jaune grimace, which Starlight took notice of as she saw him place his left hand upon the hilt of his sword, "and then nothing," he finished, "You could feel the dread in the air," he noted solemnly, "With all that negativity, you can imagine what it was like when the Grimm came for us," he explained, walking over to a window behind his desk and looking outside, "Mistral's territory is the widest reaching in the world, you know," he pointed out to the group, "and that makes it infinitely harder to protect," he mentioned seriously, "We lost so many great Huntsmen," he noted sadly, "teachers from this very institution," he added, "And it's only gotten worse," he said with frustration apparent in his tone.

"What do you mean?" Erza asked as she stepped forward. The bearded man leaned on the windowsill, taking a deep breath.

"We may have dealt with the Grimm," he started to say, "but the Mistral council's still at odds with representatives from Atlas," he explained to them, "First, it was the Dust embargo, now it's the closing of borders," he listed off in frustration, turning around and looking right at the Branwen man, "I'm not sure what happened to James in Vale," he continued on, "but it seems to have only worsened some of his more… unfortunate tendencies," he noted with a deep sigh, "And, on top of everything," he kept going, "we still don't know where the Spring Maiden is," he finished with a wave of his hand.

"All the more reason we need the Huntsmen and Huntresses here!" Qrow argued, pointing at the headmaster's desk, enticing his niece to suddenly move closer to the two before a shouting match could start.

"Okay! Okay," she chimed in, holding her hands out in a placating manner, "Things are bad; they're _bad_ ," she realized, catching everyone's attention, "But we can figure this out," she reassured to everyone, "Why is the Spring Maiden so important?" she asked the professor. He looked over at her uncle skeptically.

"I thought you filled them in," he said to him.

" _Mostly_ filled in," he corrected, "Look, there's a lot to cover, okay?" he pointed out in annoyance, "I quit teaching for a reason," he stated, removing his flask from beneath his shirt and taking a swig from it after getting the cap off. Leonardo sat back down in his chair, placing his right hand against his head.

"The four Maidens each have the power to perform feats of magic," he explained to the group, "and _they_ are the only ones capable of reaching the Relics," he mentioned while sitting up straight.

" _What_?" Jaune uttered in confusion.

"The Relics are each locked inside a chamber that can only be opened by a specific Maiden," the unkempt man responded as an explanation, "Winter for the gift of Creation, Summer for Destruction, Fall for Choice, and Spring for Knowledge," he listed off before taking another swig of his drink, "Spring is the problem," he stated.

"What happened to her?" Ren asked, sitting in between Smoker and Nora on a couch on the right side of the room. The huntsman glanced over at him in surprise before looking down somberly, enticing his old friend to speak up.

"She was determined, at first, when she inherited her powers," he answered as Qrow put the cap back on his flask and tucked it away, "but the weight of responsibility proved to be too much for the child," he mentioned, "She… ran…" he confessed slowly, "Abandoned her training, everyone," he noted solemnly to the group's surprise, "That was over a decade ago," he mentioned, "There's no telling where she could be now," he admitted with a shake of his head.

"I… know," the alcoholic chimed in suddenly, causing him to perk up, "At least… I have a pretty good idea," he corrected, stuffing his left hand into his pocket.

"Are you serious?" the headmaster questioned, standing up instantly with widened eyes.

"Well, that's good!" Starlight noted as she smiled.

"It's not exactly good news, kid," Qrow pointed out to her, much to her confusion as she arched an eyebrow, seeing him glance away for a moment.

"What are you talking about?" Leonardo questioned rhetorically, walking around his desk to get to his old friend, "This is incredible news!" he exclaimed, taking him by the shoulders and shaking him excitedly, "Where?!" he asked loudly. The huntsman shoved him off as he trotted off to the side slightly.

"I did some digging around," he responded, placing his hands into his pockets, "Looks like, after Spring ran away, she was picked up by bandits," he explained with narrowed eyes, "specifically the Branwen tribe," he stated, causing the professor to tense up in realization.

"Raven," he uttered out, causing both Ruby and Erza to let out small gasps of surprise as they blinked rapidly.

"Yang's mom?" Jaune inquired, catching the caped man's attention.

"That's right," he replied with a nod, pulling out his Scroll as he walked over and shoved aside his old friend to place it upon his desk. The holographic monitor then activated, displaying the topographical map of Remnant.

"Whoa…" the former unicorn uttered in awe, while her squadron leader narrowed her eyes onto the zoomed-in section that was pulled up on the screen.

"That's about where they've set up their main camp," the alcoholic pointed out to the group as he crossed his arms, "It's where they fall back to after raids and scouting missions," he mentioned, "Raven's managed to gain a lot of followers since she returned to the tribe," he continued as he focused on the pinpointed location, "and I'm sure when the Spring Maiden showed up, it only made things easier…" he grumbled.

"Well, Qrow," the headmaster began as he walked over and patted him upon his back, "I've got to hand it to you," he complimented as he gestured towards the map, "With these coordinates, we can mount a retrieval force and head out in a few weeks," he declared, causing the man to perk up in surprise as he unfolded his arms and clenched his fists, seeing him trot up to the computer.

"A few _weeks_?" he questioned, while the bearded man pulled up a holographic keyboard, tapping a few keys that made the text 'COPYING FILES' appear upon the interactive device, followed by 'DISCONNECTED' as the map disappeared. The requip user had taken notice, narrowing her eyes in suspicion towards the man as she folded her arms over her armored chest.

"That's right," he responded as he then walked back around behind his desk.

"Leo, maybe you didn't hear me," the huntsman began in a frustrated tone, "My sister has the Spring Maiden, and I know where she is," he pointed out seriously, placing his hands onto the desk just as the headmaster sat down in his chair, "We need to go as soon as possible!" he shouted, knocking a stack of books and papers off of the desk with his right arm.

"And perhaps you didn't hear _me_ ," Leonardo retorted angrily, "This Kingdom is in shambles," he said, "'As soon as possible' does not mean tomorrow," he pointed out to him, "It means, as soon as I can convince the council that I need Huntsmen more than they do," he told him defiantly, "Unfortunately, bandit tribes aren't very high on their list of priorities when the threat of _war_ is just on the horizon," he noted with an angered roll of his eyes.

"Then damn the council," Qrow replied, "We'll do it ourselves," he declared as he gestured towards himself, "You and I are trained Huntsmen, and these kids aren't exactly pushovers," he noted to him, "Plus, we've got the extra firepower of Red and her friends," he added, gesticulating at Erza as she glanced over at him skeptically.

"Yeah!" Nora agreed as she jumped up onto, while Ruby pumped her fist.

"Ah, what the hell…" Smoker muttered with a chuckle as he stood up alongside Ren.

"Perhaps there's a more peaceful way to approach this?" he suggested to the entire group.

"From experience, I doubt that…" the Fairy Tail mage responded, much to the confusion of Starlight as she looked over at her.

"We need to get Spring as far away from here as possible," the younger huntsman told his ally, "And Raven isn't going to give up her most prized possession without a fight," he added, clenching his left fist.

"Unfortunately, you and your sister are evenly matched," the headmaster noted, "And I'm not the fighter I used to be," he admitted as he looked at his left hand, "No offense, but these students and I can't take on an entire bandit tribe and a Maiden that's no doubt had years to hone her skills," he told him honestly, "We need to be positive we can apprehend Spring, because if we fail Raven and her tribe will scatter," he explained to the group as the caped man backed away from the desk, folding his arms over his chest, "And we'll be lost," he mentioned, "We get one shot at this," he stated as he held up his left index finger, "And it needs to be perfect," he added seriously.

"Okay, hold up," the counselor of the group chimed in as she held out her hands in a placating manner, catching their attentions, "You're forgetting about me, Erza, and Smoker," she pointed out, "We can totally handle an entire bandit tribe and a Maiden, right?" she inquired to the others.

"I'm not so sure about that," the requip user admitted, putting her arms down, "From what I've seen… and heard for that matter…" she started to explain, "the Maidens themselves are on a whole other level above regular Huntsmen and Huntresses," she stated, "Honestly, I'm not scared," she confessed to the group, "but I do want to be cautious about this," she declared, causing the former unicorn and the newest squadron leader to both blink in surprise. A long moment of silence passed afterwards as everyone stared over at Leonardo and Qrow.

"Huh…" the latter of the two sighed deeply, "You know Oz wouldn't be happy with any of this if he were here," he noted to him.

"Perhaps you're right," he agreed, "But he's not, and I'm doing the very best I can," he pointed out seriously.

"There has to be something we can do," Ruby chimed in worriedly as she stepped forward.

"What about Cinder?" Jaune questioned, catching everyone's attention, "She came with Emerald and Mercury from Haven," he pointed out to the headmaster, "Do you have anything on them?" he asked him.

"We pulled their files after the Fall of Beacon," he responded immediately, "Nothing but lies and forgeries," he added with a slight shake of his head. The blonde haired teen tightened his fists and glared down at the floor angrily, which Starlight saw as she looked on at him worriedly.

"Well, I can't say this has been a warm reunion, Leo," the caped man of the group admitted after another brief moment of silence.

"I'm sorry," the professor apologized, "I know you've all traveled a long way," he pointed out with a wave of his left hand, "But I will do everything I can to help," he promised to him.

"Sure," his friend replied, "We'll stay in the city for the time being," he said, taking his scroll off of his desk, "Local comms are still up," he noted, waggling the device at him, "Keep in touch," he advised, turning away afterwards, "Come on, kids," he beckoned to the group of seven, enticing them to all file out of the office with him. At the rear, both Ruby and Erza stopped to turn around to face the headmaster again.

"It was nice meeting you, Professor," the former of the two told him with a light smile, while the latter glanced around, noticing the scuff marks on the floor beside the bookshelf.

"Likewise," he responded with a wave after taking a moment to do so, allowing the females to depart. Once the door shut, he hung his head in a rather stressed manner, placing his right hand upon it. A holographic W suddenly projected up from his desk, which he took notice of.

" _Oh, Leo,_ " the voice of Arthur Watts sighed through the transmission, " _We have got to work on your improvisational skills,_ " he pointed out in frustration, making the professor give off a solemn look.

The entire group that had left was walking back down the academy hallway, with Nora suddenly coming to a stop.

"So, what do we do now?" she asked the others, who all stopped with her.

"We could try to go take on the tribe on our own…" Starlight suggested, earning an elbowing from her squadron leader's left arm, "Ow!" she yelped, glaring at her with puffed cheeks.

"Huh…" Qrow sighed deeply as he turned around, "You all head back to the house," he told the group, pointing at them, "I need a drink…" he grumbled, walking off.

"And I need a smoke," Smoker added, heading after him. The six that were left behind looked at each other with concern and suspicion.

 **X**

"Phoo…" the Plume-Plume user breathed as a puff of smoke left his lips from the cigar he was smoking.

"So does smoking help or hurt ya?" the caped man asked curiously, sitting beside him at the counter of a bar.

"Heh," he chuckled, putting the cigar out in an ashtray, rubbing it roughly, "Shouldn't you be askin' yourself why your damn friend doesn't wanna help us out?" he inquired to him.

"Ugh…" he groaned, looking down at his glass of beer that he had yet to take a sip from, "I doubt a demonstration would be enough to get Leo hyped to help us," he noted as he glanced away.

"Well, you haven't seen just what Scarlet can really do yet," the former marine mentioned, grabbing his own glass and chugging the drink down in one gulp, setting into the table as the ice that remained clacked against it.

"If Red's got more than those bikinis she calls armors, then there might be something…" the alcoholic joked in agreement, staring back at his drink.

"Excuse me…" a male, nasally voice chimed in, catching the two men's attentions as they looked to see a boy who was short in stature approaching them from behind. His skin was tanned, and he had a faint, perpetual blush and freckles on his cheeks. His hair was an unkempt umber with green undertones, and his eyes were hazel, with the main iris being forest green, and accents of burnt orange and yellow around the pupil.

He wore a dirty and scuffed white shirt that laced across the chest. The sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, and there was a pocket on the left tricep. His olive pants were held up by orange suspenders, and were tucked into worn, brown boots. The pants themselves were patched over the knee, and a quilted cloth hung loosely out of his left pocket. His hands were covered by orange gloves, with green straps overlapping across the back of the hand in an X shape, and around the wrist. His neck was wrapped with a torn bandage, as his expression showed a hint of nervousness.

"You know, I don't think they allow kids in here, pipsqueak," Qrow noted bluntly as he turned to face him. He looked at him for second before turning his head to the side.

"Shut up, I'm getting there," he muttered softly, much to the confusion of both men as their full attention was brought onto him. The alcoholic's eyes widened slightly and then narrowed, as suspicion was dawning onto him. "Umm… I'm supposed to tell you…" the farmhand began, "I'd like my cane back…" he requested, sounding unsure.

"…What?" Smoker uttered, completely perplexed. On the other hand, the man beside him blinked before closing his eyes for a brief moment, nodding with a slight smile. He then stood up from his barstool and faced the boy, causing him to take a couple of steps back. He lifted the collapsed cane off of his hip, staring at it for a moment.

"Hmm," he chuckled, still grinning, "It's good to see you again, Oz," he noted, tossing the object to Oscar, who caught it reflexively. The cane instantly extended itself out from the collapsed base upon touching his right hand, much to his surprise. He then put his left one onto the shaft to hold it, looking up at the caped man and blinking for a moment.

"Uh… what?" the former marine uttered again, evidently stunned by the sudden revelation.

 **X**

 _Well, here I am. Losing my arm was one thing, but now that I let my sister go off on her own adventure is another. And I was home, lying around trying to forget all of the terrible things that had happened… when what I really needed was a wake-up call. My dad even tried to get my ex down here to cheer me up. Yeah, I broke up with Gaara after what happened with Beacon… Well… took a break is a better way to say it…_

 _I think I needed to work through this myself, to see that I can move on and be stronger. I've got a new arm in place of the old one, too! But enough about that. Right now, I need to do what I have to…_

A yellow sport motorcycle that appeared to be very aerodynamic was parked at a fuel station named 'Just Rite' upon the sign on the roof. Inside, a bartender was cleaning a glass with a cloth as he narrowed his eyes onto the patron before him at the counter.

"Aren't you a little young to be drinking?" he inquired suspiciously as he arched an eyebrow. Standing there was Yang Xiao Long, who took off her aviator sunglasses with her left hand.

"A water," she requested with a grin, "It's hot out," she noted rather bluntly.

"Ohhh," the spectacled man uttered in realization as she set down her own specs, "Sure," he said, going below the counter to find a bottle. Laughter then emitted from an obviously plastered man sitting a few seats down from the blonde haired girl.

"Are you telling me _you're_ too young to drink?!" he inquired as he glanced over at her, "You look like a regular Huntress," he pointed out in a somewhat complimentary tone as he span his stool to face her, "And a beauty at that…" he added, sounding as if he was infatuated with her.

"I'm good," she retorted as he stood up, "Thanks, pal," she grumbled, hearing him start to step towards her.

"Seriously," he affirmed, still approaching her undeterred, "Not too bulky. Not too lean," he noted, "You're…"

"Just right," Yang interjected with a roll of her eyes, "Yup," she muttered, "Like I said, I'm good," she reaffirmed, becoming somewhat frustrated with the mook. He put his left hand onto the countertop next to her with a soft moan, reaching out at her with his right.

"And your hair…" he started to say. All of a sudden, the fiery girl grabbed his wrist before he could touch her. She turned to face him, revealing her glowing red eyes to his shock. "Huh?" he uttered. He barely glanced in the correct direction before her metal fist slammed into the side of his face, knocking a tooth out from his mouth. Falling backward, the man hit the floor and continued to bounce around floor-to-ceiling toward the exit like a pinball before disappearing through the doors. As they closed behind him, the 'Open' sign upon the right flipped around to 'Closed'. Just then, the bartender got up from beneath the counter, setting the bottle of water onto it to catch her attention.

"This one's on the house," he offered in gratitude with a wink, "He's been driving me crazy…" he pointed out, evidently thankful for what she had done. She reached for the bottle with her left hand, but it suddenly started to tremble. She grabbed at her wrist with her metal hand, steadying it until it stopped.

"Huhhh…" she sighed shakily before picking up the bottle and flicking the cap off with her metal fingers.

"So, what brings you around these parts?" the worker asked as she guzzled her drink down, holding up a finger to entice him to wait until she was finished.

"Thanks," she said once she was done, setting the empty bottle down, "And I'm, uh, looking for someone," she stuttered in admittance, making him chuckle.

"Not too many people come out here," he pointed out to her, "Too far from the Kingdoms," he added, "Only person worth notin' around here is… well, Ra-"

"Raven Branwen," Yang interrupted, cutting him off. A brief silence passed by before she retrieved her sunglasses and started to head out, "Thanks again," she said in gratitude.

"N-now, missy!" the man stuttered desperately, "You don't want to go messin' with bandits!" he advised out of concern, "They're a world o' trouble!" he yelled.

"So I hear," Yang replied, going outside and putting on her spectacles. The shady man she had punched moments earlier was lying on the ground holding his face, while she straddled her bike and engaged it, letting the engine rev loudly as she adjusted the throttle.

"Hey, girlie!" he called out as he began to stand up, catching her attention.

"Seriously?" she muttered in annoyance, "This isn't over?" she inquired to the man, who stood up fully with a grunt.

"I heard you're… looking for someone…" he noted to her, "Heh," he chuckled, giving her a toothless grin. A figure watched on from the trees nearby, having her arms folded over her chest as a small grin showed upon her face, while her red and yellow hair swayed with the breeze that blew by.

 **X**

"You've met Raven?" Jaune questioned out of disbelief sitting on one of two red couches in a living room of the household he and the others were staying in, being next to Starlight as Ren and Nora were on the other one. The four of them were listening to Erza as she tapped a few icons upon her interactive left repulsor arm, pulling up a holographic screen over it.

"It was by chance, but yes," she replied, "When I had run into Qrow as he was keeping watch over you, she spoke with him," she explained, looking at the words read upon the hologram she had brought before letting it fade away into thin air, "I was skeptical of her claims at first," she admitted with a deep sigh, "but it seems Qrow was right to assume that she had possession of the Spring Maiden," she noted.

"Well, we know where they are," the counselor chimed in, catching their attentions, "Why not just journey out there and get her back?" she asked her squadron leader.

"It's not that I'm scared of facing someone said to be as strong like Qrow or even more powerful," she began to respond, letting the armor over her upper body disappear in flash of golden light, revealing the white blouse underneath with a blue necktie, "but rather what it may incite," she pointed out, "We start a huge fight, there'll no doubt be negativity and dread in the air like Leonardo described," she told them, folding her arms over her chest.

"And then the Grimm will come…" the long, dark haired teen finished for her, receiving a nod.

"Well, why not call in the rest of our squad to help?" the former unicorn suggested, "We've got Kirito, Juvia, Meliodas, Ahsoka," she listed off, unfolding her left fingers one by one with each name.

"Having an army doesn't mean that retrieving the Maiden will be easy," the requip user stated firmly as she walked to the lone chair in the room, sitting down on it, "Besides, that'll only create more of a panic," she pointed out, causing her teammate to groan in frustration.

"Sorry…" she apologized, "I just wanna get this taken care as soon as possible so we can worry about how we'll take on Salem," she told the group.

"Glad to know that you're dedicated," Jaune mentioned, getting her attention as she looked over at him.

"Thanks," she replied, grinning. They then heard a trio of knocks at the door, causing them to all perk up in surprise.

"Is that Qrow?" Nora asked, arching an eyebrow.

"I doubt he'd be dumb enough to knock on his own door…" Erza responded bluntly. The Arc teen stood up from his seat cautiously to go and open it, while the rest of the group remained tense. He twisted the knob and opened it, revealing Oscar standing there, looking hesitant and uncomfortable as he held his hands together in front of himself. The one who opened the door looked back over his shoulder towards the others, getting a shrug of confusion from the perky girl.

"Can I… help you?" he asked the boy after another moment.

"Um... yeah," he slowly responded "Is there a Ruby Rose here?" he asked nervously. All four seated persons immediately stood up, tense and defensive.

"Why?" the Valkyrie girl questioned darkly, narrowing her eyes onto him. A brief moment of silence passed as the former farmhand shyly glanced away for a moment.

"Well…" he started to say, looking to his left as Qrow suddenly appeared, moving drunkenly as he grabbed him by the shoulders.

"I found him!" he exclaimed excitedly, snorting into his hand as continued laughing, stumbling into the house.

"I think her uncle could use some help…" the boy pointed out, sounding rather freaked out.

"You have got to be kidding me…" the requip user muttered, palming her face with her right hand in annoyance, while Starlight just stared ahead blankly.

"Whoa, oh," the alcoholic stammered as he stumbled towards the couch that was vacated, saving his loose balance by falling backward onto the cushions, "Ugh," he belched, settling onto his back and folding his left arm over his eyes, "I found him…" he noted, sounding as if he was out of breath.

"Uh… where's Smoker?" the counselor asked, rubbing the back of her head.

"Right here…" the former marine's voice muttered as he sauntered in with his hands in his pockets, "Once Branwen's all sober, he'll tell us everything," he promised to the group, much to their confusion.

"What is going out there?!" Ruby suddenly shouted from elsewhere in the house, stomping into the living room, "Can't a girl read her comics in peace?!" she questioned rhetorically to the others. She then heard her uncle burp and chuckle, causing her to sigh deeply as she put her left hand up to her forehead exasperatedly. "Qrow, did you get drunk again?" she asked bluntly.

"Maybe…" he answered as he raised his right hand, letting out another belch.

"Bleh…" Starlight uttered in disgust as she stuck out her tongue.

"Oh," Oscar uttered as he finally stepped into the living room, looking over at the girl with the red cloak as he had caught everyone's attention, "You… have silver eyes," he noted, somewhat awed by the appearance of them. The girl looked over at him, a touch surprised by his words. She turned to Ren and Nora, as the latter shrugged again before she looked back at the boy.

"Who… are you?" she asked, causing her relative to chuckle from the couch.

"Uh… Well…" the former farmhand began as everyone was looking at him skeptically aside from the Plume-Plume user, "My name is Oscar Pine," he introduced, having his hands together behind his back.

"Wait for it…" the drunk man muttered in anticipation.

"But you probably know me as… Professor Ozpin," the boy finished, causing everyone aside from the two men to gasp, as Jaune took a couple of steps back. As they all gave off confused expressions, the drunken man continued chuckling happily.

"I did it!" he exclaimed, punching his fists into the air before falling off of the couch onto the floor, startling the others nearby.

"Ooh!" Nora yelped in surprise.

"Oh brother…" Smoker muttered with a roll of his eyes.

 **END**

 **And there's the debut of my 50** **th** **story! I'm really excited to get this going after the completions of several other stories beforehand, but of course, I'd figure that I'd give this little preview of the adaptation with my own little spin on it.**

 **I also hope the point-of-view parts captured each member's character of Team RWBY and weren't too unexpected. I felt as if it was a good way to introduce them without having to do a full recap of their arcs in the last two volumes. Expect more news on this story to come in the future!**

 **And make sure to check out my FanFiction forum, Tumblr, and Deviantart pages for the latest updates! The links to those will be in my profile page for those who'll be looking! I look forward to your thoughts on my first RWBY-related story!**


	2. Dread in the Air

**NegaiFreak: Guess what's finally back?**

 **Weiss Schnee: Ugh, about time…**

 **NegaiFreak: Hey, cut me some slack. I had to rearrange my schedule to make sure you guys didn't hog all the chapter updates.**

 **Weiss Schnee: …Fair enough.**

 **Trafalgar Law: Can we just get this chapter started? I'm pretty sure some of us are getting impatient…**

 **NegaiFreak: Right away, Law! Welcome back to "RWBY: Omni Force"!**

 **RWBY: Omni Force**

Guilt. Betrayal. Fear. The words rang through Leonardo's head as he held it in his hands. A look of 'what have I done?' was evident on his face. He betrayed Ozpin. He betrayed Qrow. He betrayed everyone that had fought to protect the relics. Just then, the door to his office opened.

"Are we ready?" Arthur's voice asked, enticing Leonardo to lift his head out of his hands. He saw Arthur close the door behind him as he entered, hands behind his back as he approached the headmaster's desk. There was a brief exchange of looks before Leonardo turned his head away in shame. Arthur just smirked. A moment later, a pathway opened adjacent to the office, with the two heading down it. Leonardo looked drastically nervous and frightened as Arthur followed him down the curved hallway alit by torches. They arrived at a circular room, where a Grimm was floating about. It had a small, spherical body that was covered with bone-like plates, along with red tentacles ending in white, bony spikes and a single eye. Leonardo shook at the sight of the creature. "After you," Arthur offered, shoving the headmaster closer to the Seer.

"Your Grace…" he began nervously to the creature, "are… you there?" he asked. The red smoke-like substance in the Seer's head shifted to form an image, projecting Salem and Cinder within the conference hall of the former's domain.

" _Hello, Leonardo,_ " she greeted over the communication line made, " _Do you have something to report?_ " she inquired as she and Cinder were also looking through a Seer to communicate with them as well.

" _Of course, ma'am,_ " Leonardo responded with a nod, " _I would not waste your time, if not…_ " he emphasized. It was evident that he wanted to please her. Arthur then walked over, standing beside him.

" _I'm still just so fascinated by this creature,_ " he admitted as he leaned closer to the Seer, " _Cinder dear, are we coming through?_ " he asked the Fall Maiden in a mocking tone, " _Can you see us clearly?_ " he questioned, causing her to grit her teeth angrily, " _Well, as clearly as you can…_ " he remarked in correction.

"Shut… up," Cinder snarled in response.

"Oh goody…" Arthur muttered sarcastically, "you've recovered…" he realized.

" _Your report,_ " Salem chimed in before the bickering could continue, enticing Arthur to step back, " _What is it?_ " she asked Leonardo, who meekly held his hands together.

"I've… I've found the Spring Maiden…" he answered with a stutter. Salem blinked.

" _Is that so?_ " she wondered, letting off a small grin, " _Well done,_ " she complimented, making Leonardo grin out of relief, " _Arthur,_ " she continued, causing the headmaster to step aside so she could see her colleague, " _had I known how_ _ **useful**_ _you'd be in expediting this process, I would've sent you long, long ago,_ " she emphasized.

"As much as I'd _love_ to take credit, ma'am," Arthur began to reply with a shrug of his shoulders and a roll of his eyes, "I can't say that that either of us are to thank for this development," he admitted with a shake of his head, "I guess you could say… a little birdie told us," he remarked.

" _Explain,_ " Salem requested curiously as the Seer turned to Leonardo.

" _You see, ma'am,_ " he began, " _Qrow Branwen arrived at Haven Academy earlier today,_ " he told her, " _He believes Spring has taken residence with his sister's tribe,_ " he explained. Cinder's eye lit up with realization as her anger started to boil.

"Is... the girl... with him?" she asked slowly in a threatening tone.

" _Yes, Miss Rose was in attendance,_ " Arthur answered, causing the Fall Maiden's fist to shake with rage before Salem gestured for her to calm herself.

"And you know of the tribe's location?" she asked Leonardo.

"Yes ma'am!" he answered quickly, "But you have to hurry!" he mentioned in a desperate tone, "Qrow is already at odds with my-" A look of annoyed concentration marked Salem's face as her eyes and the jewel at her forehead glowed an ominous red. One of the Seer's tentacles in the room shot out at Leonardo, wrapping around his throat and choking him. He tried to grab at it, but was unable to take hold as the Seer pulled him a step closer.

" _Leonardo,_ " Salem began, " _do you remember the first time we met?_ " she asked of him as the Seer pulled him down onto his knees, " _I remember,_ " she recalled in an ominous tone, " _I remember your fear,_ " she noted as he continued to be choked, " _But, since that day, you've been extraordinarily brave,_ " she pointed out, sounding impressed, " _I won't forget all that you've done for me,_ " she promised as one of the Seer's tentacles wiggled before its point was aimed at Leonardo's face, " _Do not forget everything that I can do to you…_ " she threatened as the Seer's point got closer to the headmaster's face, much to his fright. Within the orb of the creature, Salem waved her hand, and simultaneously, the Seer released Leonardo from its grip, allowing him to catch his breath as he hacked and coughed beforehand while on his hands and knees. " _Cinder, you and your team will meet with Doctor Watts, and together, convince Raven Branwen that the survival of her people depends on her cooperation,_ " she instructed to the Fall Maiden, "Once we have Spring under control, escort her to the Relic and contact Hazel," she told her, "The White Fang was promised the destruction of Haven, and they'll have it once we have what we need…" she stated firmly, narrowing her eyes.

"Understood," Arthur responded, about to head off.

" _Not you, Arthur,_ " Salem said, catching his attention as he turned back to face the Seer, " _Tyrian's in need of a new tail,_ " she mentioned to him.

"What happened to his old one?" he asked, sounding surprised.

" _Guess…_ " Cinder growled. Arthur shook his head in realization.

"The silver-eyed girl?" he inquired. Cinder gave off a stern look, grunting angrily as acknowledgement. "It will be done," he promised with a slight bow.

" _Good,_ " Salem responded. Her image then disappeared from the Seer, disconnecting the transmission between the parties.

"Seems Qrow was right, Lionheart," Arthur realized, catching the headmaster's attention, "The students aren't pushovers," he noted. Leonardo looked away ashamedly, still rubbing his hurting neck. Back in the domain, Cinder clenched her fist tightly as she stood by the window. Salem could easily tell she was angry.

"You're free to speak your mind," she offered.

"I don't understand…" she said, turning around to face her master, "Working with bandits? Keeping Ruby alive?" she questioned, "What's the point?" she asked in frustration, "We're strong enough to take what we want by force!" she emphasized angrily, keeping her fist clenched. Salem could see her point. The Fall of Beacon was certainly an example of how force ended up working in their favor. But in the end, they still hadn't found the Relic of Choice there. So for the mission at Haven, she'd have to have things done differently.

"Never underestimate the usefulness of others," she advised to her pupil, "Take Leonardo," she pointed out, "he was one of Ozpin's most trusted," she continued, "and yet now…" she trailed off, knowing Cinder understood where she was going, letting off a laugh, "You will have the power I promised you, when the time is right," she told her, "But remember that it comes with a cost," she noted seriously, "If Ruby Rose has learned to harness her gift, then you must take care to protect yours," she advised strictly, much to Cinder's surprise, "There's only so much I can do to aid you," she added. Cinder glanced off to the side for a moment, deep in thought over what her master was saying. As much as she hated the idea, she knew Salem had a sound point. She then turned back to her and bowed, walking off afterwards. "And Cinder," Salem continued, making her stop and look back at her, "before you go, inform Tyrian…" she began as her smile slowly twisted in an ominous frown as her sclera flashed red, "that I wish to have a word with him…" she stated. Cinder grinned, nodding in acknowledgement of the order. The sadistic Faunus was finally going to get what was coming to him for failing his master. As she exited the room, the door shut behind her.

"That's quite a pity, Salem," a male voice echoed from the corner of the room, "Tyrian could've been useful to us down the line..." he noted, coming out from the shadows to reveal himself as Eon. Salem smirked.

"I'm not getting rid of him, my love," she retorted, turning her head away, "I'm merely... _encouraging_ him..." she emphasized. Eon chuckled as he went over to her.

"I've yet to see the future of this world," he began, "but I can already imagine the hope... stripped away from the faces of our enemies..." he muttered aloud.

"Hm," Salem laughed, "You always were one to imagine..." she noted, turning back to him to gift him with a tender kiss, closing her eyes. He returned the gesture.

"Ahem," someone coughed, causing the two to separate and look behind them, "If I may interject..." a man's voice began to say. The two Kronos Alliance members were looking at one of their comrades. By all appearances, he looked like a salaryman with short brown hair and light eyes. "I do believe you owed us a payment for our services," he pointed out to Salem.

"Ah, yes," she realized, "The huntsmen are all gathered down in the dungeon," she told him, gesturing towards the door, "But are you quite positive that you can take their Semblances?" she questioned, "They're not exactly Quirks like yours..." she mentioned out of concern.

"You need not worry," All For One retorted reassuringly as he raised his right hand, "My Quirk allows me to stock up as many powers as I please," he explained, "And to those I don't need, I can simply transfer them to those that do," he added, "It's how I've gained as many followers as I have over the years," he said with a chuckle.

"I see..." Salem concurred, "Perhaps I should introduce Cinder to you," she suggested, "I'm sure once she returns, I can-"

"Actually, darling," Eon interrupted to her surprise, "we should hold off on granting her access to the alliance," he advised seriously, "Once we've recovered the Relic of Knowledge, then we may give her an opportunity to meet us," he stated in a firm tone.

"...Very well then, love," she replied with a grin, "All For One," she began to the other man in the room.

"Yes, yes, I'll be going," he grumbled aloud, placing his hands together behind his back as he went over to the doors, "Try not to get too comfortable while I'm gone..." he muttered before exiting.

"Oh... we intend to..." Salem whispered the moment he left.

 **X**

Weiss still seemed somber over being unable to help the people begging for help over the radio earlier, glancing out the window from the cargo bay. Danny and Law were there as well, with the former sleeping beside some of the dust crates, while the latter leaned up against the wall with his cap tipped over his eyes. Weiss smiled softly at the half-ghost teen. He was the first familiar friendly face she'd seen since the Fall of Beacon.

 **FLASHBACK**

" _If I had the money, I'd buy this painting in a heartbeat," a voice chimed in just as Henry Marigold had left. Weiss turned and gasped lightly. Standing there was none other than Danny, dressed in a dark grey, two-piece suit with a white dress shirt and a blue tie. His raven black hair was still as spiky as ever. He turned to the Schnee heiress. "Hey Weiss," he greeted. Almost instantaneously, she hugged him. She wept into his shoulder as she held him tight. Never did she think he would be the first person to see her after all that had happened. And she didn't care. She was just glad to see him. Her father noticed the interaction from afar, narrowing his eyes onto Danny as his daughter pulled away._

" _What… are you doing here?" she asked with a sniffle in between._

" _Well, we're here to see you," Danny responded._

" _Wait, 'we'?" Weiss repeated, arching an eyebrow as he nodded._

" _There's another guy here who wants to meet you," he told her, "He's a squadron leader on the Omni Force, like Gaara," he pointed out. Weiss' eyes slightly widened. An Omni Force squadron leader wanted to meet with her? Why?_

" _Excuse me, young man," her father's voice chimed in, snapping her away from her thoughts as she saw him approach, "may I see your invitation?" he requested._

" _Invitation?" Danny repeated in confusion. Jacques narrowed his eyes._

" _Father, he's my guest," Weiss interjected quickly, grasping Danny's arm with both of her hands in a protective manner._

" _Guest or not, Weiss," Jacques began, "he still needs to show proof of his admission into our manor," he told her, "We can't have anyone wandering about without knowing who they are…" he pointed out. Weiss was stunned. And offended. For her father to assume such a thing… Her attempt at an argument was halted as Danny stuck his hand out in front of her._

" _It's cool, Weiss," he assured as he patted himself down, trying to feel for something, "I must've left it in my coat…" he said to Jacques, who narrowed his eyes in suspicion, "I'll go and grab it," he promised, walking off… but not before… "You'll know him when you see him…" he whispered into Weiss' ear, making her turn to see him depart the ballroom._

" _A friend of yours?" her father guessed. She balled her fists, which he noticed. "Don't act up, Weiss," he advised, "That wouldn't look good for the heiress of the company…" he pointed out with a smirk underneath his moustache. Weiss was about ready to explode with anger. The resentment she felt towards her father was getting worse and worse. He was forcing her to do as he wished, exploiting her for his own benefits. And then someone started talking about Beacon. Mocking the kingdom of Vale. At that point, Weiss snapped. Granted, she wasn't a raging fireball like Yang, but she was still mad. No one really cared for the school that was destroyed by Grimm. All they cared about was the fancy party and food. And as her father tried to stop her from 'embarrassing' him, she lost control. Her semblance activated all on its own, summoning a white Boarbatusk that charged for the woman that had been insulting her school all night._

" _Please, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, just leave me alone!" she begged as the summoned creature was about to skewer her. Just as James was about to draw his gun, a sword was drawn. All of a sudden, the Boarbatusk was sliced cleanly in half, dissipating completely in thin air like snowflakes. Weiss looked up and widened her eyes. Before her stood a slim man of a relatively tall height. He had faint shadows right under his grey eyes. He wore a northern-style fur hat, which was white and had a spotted pattern along the bottom and the bill. He had short dark hair, a majority of which was obscured by his hat, save for his sideburns and small goatee. His hands were tattooed, with each having the letters ' H' spelled out on each finger, along with a cross on the back of each hand. He wore a long black coat with a jolly roger along the hem and on the sleeve over a pair of jeans with odd brown spots at the knees and thighs, and a black hoodie featuring the same jolly roger at its chest in yellowish-orange ink. The sword he had drawn was about as tall as he was. It had an oblong-shaped hilt trimmed with short white fur, a purple grip with two white rings around it and a yellow pommel, sheathed in a black scabbard decorated by white crosses from the opening to the bottom, and with a small piece of red rope tied near its opening. As he sheathed it back into its scabbard, he shot a glance towards James… and then Weiss. Her eyes shook in realization. He was the one Danny was talking about…_

" _Sorry," he apologized to Jacques, tipping his cap before walking out._

 **END FLASHBACK**

Weiss knew that if it wasn't for Danny and Law, she'd be in a much worse position being locked in her room. The only obstacle now was making it to Mistral.

"Aaahhh…" Danny yawned as he woke up, rubbing his tired eyes, "Are we there yet?" he asked as he started to stand up.

"Not quite, Phantom…" Law responded as he tipped up the thick bill of his cap, "But it's definitely bright out…" he complained as the sunlight reached his eyes. Weiss giggled. She then looked out the window, blinking in surprise to see a series of landmasses floating in the bright blue, partly cloudy sky. They had black crystals jutting out underneath their formations.

"Whoa," Danny uttered in surprise as he noticed the landmasses, too. Out of curiosity, Weiss got up from the crate she was sitting on, heading over to the pilot's cabin. Danny and Law followed her as the doors opened.

"Where are we?" she asked the pilot, gesturing towards their surroundings.

"Nowhere good," he bluntly answered, "Passing by some Lake Matsu's floating islands," he told the group, "The Gravity Dust that forms in these things is giving us a little turbulence," he explained, "Nothing I can't handle, but the islands sometimes hide some nasty Grimm," he mentioned. As Weiss walked over to him, a sudden gasp emitted from Danny as he let out a breath of red air.

"Uh oh," he uttered out in realization.

"Trouble?" Law guessed, catching Weiss and the pilot's attentions.

"I think so…" Danny responded. During the time he spent in this universe, he discovered that his Ghost Sense was also capable of being a Grimm Sense. The difference between the two was the latter making him gasp red breath.

"Well, let's just bet on our friends in distress keeping them preoccupied," the pilot remarked in response.

"Somehow, I don't think that'll help…" Law retorted with a shake of his head. None of them had yet to notice an airship ablaze with a huge trail of smoke behind it, heading right for them. Weiss then turned to her right, seeing it coming.

"Look out!" she screamed.

"Huh?!" the pilot gasped, quickly pulling his ship upward to evade the airship as it barreled in. Weiss noticed the flag it had with the white symbol for Mistral on its sail… right before it collided into one of the floating islands in an explosion of smoke and flames. "You've got to be kidding me!" the pilot yelled, quickly tuning the radio to listen for nearby transmissions.

" _By the gods, we've lost Percy! Help!_ " the woman on the line screamed desperately.

"Over there!" Law called out, looking out the window with the others to see another Mistralian airship being pursued by a swarm of huge, wasp-like Grimm. Some of them unleashed their extendable stingers, hooking onto the wood hull of the airship, which then became unable to move as it was being pulled in all directions.

" _We're hooked! We're hooked!_ " the Mistral pilot screamed over the communication line as Weiss and the others looked on in disbelief, seeing the ship's exterior begin to crack upon being pulled very tightly by the Grimm swarm, " _Everyone, abandon ship!_ " she exclaimed as one of the Grimm somersaulted overhead, dive-bombing into the top of the ship to make it explode instantaneously in a cloud of fiery smoke, much to the shock of those watching from the cargo ship. The Grimm then turned their attention onto the lone ship in the vicinity, with some clicking their mandibles before they began buzzing off towards it.

"Wasp Grimm?" Law guessed, turning back to the pilot.

"Lancers… freaking Lancers!" he muttered, adjusting the controls before pulling a lever back, "Alright, buckle up-! Huh?" he uttered, interjecting himself as he saw Weiss' ponytail go down the hatch into the cargo hold. Danny and Law were also gone. "Hmm…" he growled in frustration, turning his attention back to piloting the ship, " _What are you doing?_ " his voice asked over the intercom speaker as Weiss picked up her Myrtenaster.

"What we should've done in the first place!" she answered as a retort while approaching the multitude of crates, "You're carrying Dust, right?" she inquired to the pilot.

"Officially… no," he responded, "Actually… yes…" he admitted, enticing Law to roll his eyes upon hearing. Weiss opened up one of the containers, revealing some vials of powdered Dust inside as she grinned.

"Then when I tell you, open the rear door!" she instructed to the pilot, loading the revolver-like clip of her weapon with six vials before setting the blade upright. The revolver spun for a second before clicking into place. Just then, the ship shook, almost causing her and the others to lose their balance.

"Better make it quick!" the pilot yelled to the trio, who hurriedly made their way over to the cargo doors. As the Lancers were picking up on the ship, it skimmed across the lake water before flying up over the islands, maneuvering quickly. Unfortunately, the Grimm were catching up, with some shooting their stingers out to try and latch onto the ship. One managed to nick the left wing, causing the ship to shake again. " _Kids, we're cutting it close!_ " the pilot shouted.

"Not all of us are _kids_ , ya know…" Law grumbled as he drew his sword. Summoning a black glyph underneath her feet, Weiss kept herself and the pirate planted to the cargo hold's floor. "Phantom, you ready?" he asked the half-ghost.

"Yeah," he replied with a smirk as his eyes flashed a bright green. Weiss raised her Myrtenaster.

"Ready!" she called out. The cargo doors opened, with wind blowing about as her skirt fluttered about. Danny then ran forwards and jumped out.

"Goin' ghost!" he exclaimed. A white ring of energy appeared around his torso, separating into two as they went up and down his body respectively. His hair changed to a snow white, while his outfit changed into a white and black jumpsuit with a green logo that was a 'D' with its negative space inside forming a 'P'. His legs morphed into a ghostly tail as he flew out at the swarm of Lancers. Some of them veered off after him, while the rest continued to pursue the ship.

"He changed his costume…" Weiss noted, sounding surprised.

"I thought you were ready, Schnee!" Law yelled as he formed a small blue sphere of energy over his right hand, "Room!" he exclaimed, causing it to expand outwards, encasing a good dozen Lancers. He then swung his blade out in a horizontal slash, causing a wave of energy to surge and slice the wings off of five of the Lancers, causing them to plummet down into the lake below. One of the ones that remained fired out its extendable stinger towards him, only for Weiss to spin around and deflect it with a burst of wind from her blade, blowing them all back. Myrtenaster's revolver then shifted to the red Dust vial. She held the blade upright, moving her fingers down it as a spark of flame appeared. She formed another glyph and shot out a fireball towards the swarm. Most managed to evade the ones she shot out afterwards, but were being enticed to stay away to evade them. One Lancer ended up struck though, fading away into ashes.

"Haha!" the pilot laughed from the cabin upon noticing that his passengers were dealing with the Grimm rather well, "Hold on!" he called out as he pulled back a lever. He steered the ship quickly, continuing to pull off great evasive maneuvers.

"Whoa!" Danny yelped as he narrowly evaded getting struck by a stinger, still leading the other half of the swarm away in midair "Yeah, now I know why bumblebees are better than wasps…" he muttered out as a greenish energy glowed around his hands, "They're at least sweeter!" he remarked before firing rays of green light at them. Three were struck, all fading away instantly, but the others continued chasing after the half-ghost man. "Okay… so what stops a swarm?" he wondered to himself as he was heading towards one of the floating islands. His eyes widened in realization before he let off a smirk. He then veered upwards just before he could hit the rock of the island as the Lancers followed him. His hands started to glow bright blue as did his eyes before he stopped, turning around and looking at the swarm as they were drawing closer. He formed a giant snowball upon his hands. "Avalanche!" he exclaimed before throwing it down, striking all of the Lancers as they went plummeting into the lake below. He grinned, but then saw the cargo ship still being pursued by the rest of the swarm. His legs formed into a ghostly tail as he flew off towards it.

"Room!" Law yelled as he formed another energy bubble around the ship and the pursuing Lancers. Weiss then had five more glyphs appear in front of them, neatly aligned. One by one, they fired off beams of white light towards the Grimm. And it when it seemed like they were primed to evade the light… "Shambles!" Law exclaimed, flipping his hand over. All of a sudden, some of the Lancers shifted places with each while they were moving in different directions, causing them to get struck by the rays of light. Weiss looked over at Law and gave him a grin, which he returned… and then yelped as the ship started to rock, causing them to both lose their balance. "The hell?!" he shouted in surprise.

"What was that?!" Weiss asked loudly.

"We're hooked!" the pilot replied as a pair of stingers were sticking in through the ceiling just behind the cabin. The Lancers that had latched on firmly planted themselves onto the cargo ship, clicking their mandibles as their legs pierced through the ship's metal exterior.

"Schnee! Glyph!" Law cried out as he ran out towards the open door. It didn't take a second for Weiss to realize what he was doing, quickly forming a black glyph just a few yards in front of the opening. Law jumped onto it, using it as a foothold before leaping onto the top of the ship. He imbued his right hand in Armament Haki, causing a dark purple aura to envelop his sword as he swung it out to slash the two Lancers, making them evaporate into ashes as he pierced his blade into the ceiling to maintain his position atop the ship. More of the Grimm fired their extendable stingers out at him, but he swatted them away with his blade. "Room!" he bellowed again, creating another spherical bubble of energy that encased the Lancers and some parts of the floating islands, "Takt!" he cried out, raising his left index finger. Spikes of rock suddenly shot out from the islands, piercing through three more Lancers as they dissipated completely. "Damn…" he muttered out in frustration. For every Lancer they killed, more were heading their way. Just then, one's stinger knocked his blade out of the ceiling, causing him to lose his balance. He only had a second to correct himself, jumping forwards towards the end of the cargo hold. As Weiss saw him, she immediately formed another black glyph for him to jump off of, allowing him to land safely back in the cargo hold on his left knee as he breathed heavily. "Thanks…" he said in gratitude, making her smile.

"I got an idea! Hold on!" the pilot's voice suddenly cried out to them, "Literally!" he added frantically, enticing the two passengers in the cargo hold to maintain their footing. The pilot then pushed the lever forward, accelerating the ship toward one of the floating islands. The Grimm that latched on were unaware, too focused on trying to breach the metal exterior of the ship. With a grunt, the pilot then made the ship go into a dive, using the remaining forward momentum throw the Lancers off into the side of the rock formation. " _Ha, ha!_ " he laughed triumphantly over the intercom.

"Looks like we still got more though…" Law grumbled as he stood up beside Weiss, seeing that there were at least half a dozen Lancers in pursuit. Weiss narrowed her eyes in thought before widening them.

"Can you find a pair of islands we can fit between?" she asked the pilot. Law blinked. Meanwhile, the cargo ship turned, traveling toward a pair of closely adjacent, interconnected islands.

"Kid, you are reading my mind!" the pilot remarked in response. The cargo ship narrowly avoided the close islands' walls and the attacking Lancers, Weiss formed three more orange glyphs, swinging her Myrtenaster out to fire off a trio of fireballs that veered upward and struck a rock formation. A large Lancer awoke from the rumbling as its antennae twitched.

"Think you missed, Schnee…" Law noted… right before he started seeing rocks tumbling down.

"Did I now?" she wondered sarcastically, causing him to chuckle. The cargo ship narrowly avoided the debris as it struck the Lancers, sending them crashing into the water below. It then zoomed out through the adjacent islands, leaving a cloud of dust in its wake.

"Yeah!" the pilot exclaimed, "Great goin', kids!" he complimented to his passengers, "We are in the clear!" he noted confidently with a smile on his face.

"Not a kid, jackass!" Law yelled back in frustration. Weiss just laughed and then exhaled in relief. She wished they had helped out the Mistralian airships sooner before the Lancers ended up going after them…

"Guess you guys beat me to the punch," Danny's voice noted as he phased into the ship's cargo hold, catching the attentions of his comrades.

"Thanks for taking care of that other half," Law said in gratitude to him, "Let's get this bird outta here before-" Another gasp of red breath left Danny's mouth.

"Uh oh," he uttered in realization.

"More Lancers?" Weiss guessed based on his reaction, arching an eyebrow.

"Probably a straggler," Law noted as he sheathed his blade into its scabbard, "Phantom can take it," he assured confidently. A loud buzzing caught his attention.

"Uh, guys?" Danny uttered out, landing on the floor and backing up a few steps as his green eyes widened slightly. Weiss and Law looked out and gasped to see the giant Lancer flying just outside the cargo doors.

"You've gotta be shitting me…" the pirate muttered out.

"It's a Queen Lancer!" Weiss exclaimed.

" _What?!_ " the pilot's voice cried out over the intercom. The giant Grimm flew after the ship, evidently angered about being awoken. Weiss steeled herself, planting her right foot back before firing out icy blue rays of light from five glyphs she formed. They struck the Queen Lancer, but it wasn't even fazed as it approached.

"Hang on, I got this!" Danny cried out, standing in front of Weiss and taking a deep breath.

"Oh boy…" Law uttered in realization, covering his ears. Danny unleashed a powerful sonic scream from his mouth with green waves of energy flowing off of it, slamming right into the Queen Lancer. Weiss smiled as it was getting pushed back, but then saw it fire off several spike-like projectiles from its head and abdomen towards the ship. She quickly ran out in front of Danny to his surprise as he stopped screaming, waving her blade to create a barricade of that deflected the projectiles as they pierced the metal walls. One projectile ended up nicking the half-ghost man's right shoulder.

"Agh!" he yelped as he grabbed at his wound with his left hand, stumbling back. Other projectiles pierced the ship's wings and then the engines, causing it to rock. The pilot felt the rocking as he quickly checked as the ship's systems on the screen.

"Do something!" he begged to his passengers.

"Dammit, we're trying!" Danny complained, still wincing from his wound as Law approached him. Weiss then turned back to look at the crates of Dust in the cargo hold. She created a white glyph just outside of the ship, flipping backwards to land on it as a foothold before jumping to the back of the room, cutting off the bindings to the crates in the process.

"Guys, duck!" she cried out to her friends, enticing them to lower themselves as she made five more white glyphs, levitating all of the crates up, "HYAAAHH!" she screamed, swinging her blade to throw out the crates towards the Queen Lancer. They exploded upon striking the Grimm, leaving behind sparks of electricity, flames, and ice from the cloud of dark smoke. But the Queen Lancer flew out seconds later, seemingly unscathed to Weiss' shock as she gasped.

"I can see the shoreline!" the pilot yelled from the cabin, "Gods, we're not gonna make it!" he cried out in panic. Weiss regained her composure, narrowing her eyes.

"Guys, get ready," she instructed to her friends.

"Ready for what?" Danny asked in confusion as he and Law stood back up. Weiss swung her Myrtenaster around as she danced, moving her fingers down the blade as an icy blue aura wafted off of it. She then did two pirouettes before piercing her weapon into the metal floor. Two large white glyphs appeared on the floor and the roof, enticing Danny and Law to step back as their eyes widened. Coming into from upon the floor glyph was a medieval suit of armor that stood twice as tall as the person who summoned it.

"Whoa…" Law uttered in shock. He knew Weiss was capable of a lot of things… but this was something else… The Arma Gigas took a ready stance, prepared to do whatever Weiss needed it to.

"Pull up…" she yelled to the pilot, "now!" she screamed as she turned her head. With a push of a lever, the pilot made the cargo ship ascend further into the air before maneuvering to have the vehicle upside down.

"Whoa!" Law yelped before being caught by one of Weiss' black glyphs, while Danny just floated about. She too made her own to stand on with the ship upside down as she flipped over with her Arma Gigas. The summoned armor then jumped out of the ship's cargo hold, diving down towards the Queen Lancer. Weiss knelt down, closing her eyes as she held her Myrtenaster in concentration. Outside, the Arma Gigas brought forth a longsword about the same height as it. As the ship then went upright, Weiss maintained her concentration, making the Arma Gigas suddenly disappear into white ashes… only for it to reappear right underneath the Queen Lancer, using a glyph as a foothold. It then jumped up and slashed at the Grimm with its sword, followed by disappearing and reappearing again from different directions to slash it. However, the Queen Lancer managed to fire off her extendable stinger, which the Arma Gigas accidentally deflected into the engines of the cargo ship as its pilot felt the rumble. The summoned armor then dove down and landed a final slash to the Grimm, making it completely dissipate into ashes as it did the same.

"Huh… huh…" Weiss breathed out as she and Law landed back on the floor.

"That was something, Schnee…" he pointed out, sounding relieved. The blaring alarm wasn't a relieving sign though.

"We gotta bail!" Danny cried out as he flew over to his teammates.

"What about the pilot?!" Weiss screamed out over the alarm.

"We'll grab him on the way out! Come on!" Danny assured, grabbing Law's right hand with his left. But just as he was about to grab Weiss', another explosion rocked the ship, causing the ceiling to hit his head hard, making him immediately fall unconscious as he and the pirate fell out of the ship.

"Shit…!" he cursed in realization as they fell. Weiss gasped.

"DANNY! LAW!" she screamed, seeing them plummet towards the lake below.

"Ergh…!" Law grunted as he endured the force of the wind, looking back to see that Danny's eyes were shut. That hit knocked him out cold. "PHANTOM, WAKE UP!" he pleaded out, "WAKE-!" They splashed into the water hard. Weiss could only shiver with fear, hoping that they somehow survived that fall. Before she could even try to go after them, she realized that the ship was still on a crash course for the water as well. Quickly throwing up several large black glyphs for the ship to go through, she was able to redirect it towards the shoreline… where it crashed.

 **X**

Since the attack on Beacon, the White Fang had been relatively silent in terms of action with the exception of Menagerie. The reason obviously being their involvement in Beacon's destruction. And only one person was to blame for that involvement.

"Adam," a woman's voice began within the grand hall of the White Fang Headquarters, "I'm not going to repeat myself," she emphasized,"so I want you to listen when I tell you that the White Fang will not attack Haven Academy," she stated firmly. Between four guards and sitting upon the throne was a female, Bengal tiger-based Faunus with orange eyes, dark complexion and wild black, chin-length hair with an asymmetrical bob style. Her Faunus trait was manifested as an extra pair of ears, and her body was adorned with numerous tattoos resembling tiger stripes. She wore four golden earrings on three of her ears, one each on her human ears, and two on her left Faunus ear as well as a small jewel on her forehead. She was seen wearing a form-fitting black dress with light green accents on the rims of the outfit; the dress left most of her back open, had two long splits on the side which revealed a pair of black shorts, a shorter split in the front and a small squared keyhole. Over the dress, she wore a back-revealing red cape with gold accents, as well as a green waist cincher with red rims that had a black belt over it, which fastened a green pouch on her right hip. Aside from that, she wore black stockings in conjunction with green sandals that had red laces which were tied to her calves, as well as a black elbow length fingerless glove on her right hand. Kneeling before her was none other than Adam Taurus.

"High Leader Khan, I am begging you," he pleaded to her.

"You should beg for forgiveness and nothing else!" Sienna shouted back, making Adam lower his head ashamedly, "The assault you led on Beacon was not the great victory you clearly think it was," she told him, "and you should be more grateful your punishment wasn't severe," she mentioned with a shake of her head, "You are a symbol for many in our organization, but that doesn't make you infallible," she pointed out seriously.

"I was merely trying to follow your example, High Leader," Adam said in a remorseless tone.

"And what example might that be?" the White Fang leader questioned curiously.

"…Strength," Adam answered simply, "Strength and unwavering conviction," he emphasized, closing his left hand into a fist, "The humans have seen that strength now," he stated firmly. Sienna sighed.

"I was one of the first to suggest violence where violence was necessary," she retorted, "Peace bred complacency and acceptance of our place in the world," she noted in remembrance, "I will not allow humanity to push us down without pushing them back," she firmly declared, "But the destruction of the Huntsman Academies crosses a line!" she yelled, pausing for a moment, "The loss of the CCT has brought global communication to a crawl! And the White Fang is more of a target than ever before!" she pointed out angrily as her right fist was clenched over the arm of her seat, "You have justified humanity's campaign against us, and for what?!" she asked rhetorically, "Empty promises from a group of humans?" she guessed, "Humans we still know nothing about, and come and go as they please!" she added in frustration, "These are not example of strength, Adam," she told her subordinate, "They are examples of your talent being diminished by shortsightedness!" she shouted angrily, gritting her teeth as she slammed her fist against the arm of her seat. Adam took a moment to collect himself. He already had a response planned.

"If you wanna know more about the humans," he began, "then why not talk to one of them yourself?" he suggested. He stood up and turned towards the entrance to the room. "Hazel!" he called out. The doors opened. Standing there was Hazel Reinhart, who looked somewhat annoyed.

"Took you long enough…" he muttered out, walking forwards.

"What is this?!" Sienna exclaimed, enticing her guards to all raise their spears, pointing towards the approaching man.

"Apologies," he said as he came to a stop just before the steps, "I don't aim to cause any trouble," he promised.

"You've brought a human to this location?!" Sienna yelled accusingly towards Adam. She was furious.

"You should hear what he has to say," Adam advised.

"This is grounds for execution!" Sienna shouted vehemently.

"Ma'am," Hazel chimed in, "please," he pleaded calmly, "Nobody needs to die today," he said with a shake of his head, kneeling down before her, "I'm just asking for a moment of your time," he requested.

"The longer you stay here, the less of a chance you have of leaving alive…" Sienna threatened. Hazel paused for a moment…

"I'll take those chances, if you don't mind," he remarked in reply, looking up at her. Curious about his remarks, she sat back down onto her throne, enticing her guards to return to their neutral positions as they pulled back their spears. Hazel then stood back up. "You don't like me," he noted, "You have no reason to like me," he mentioned, "But you don't have to like me to get the results you want," he pointed out to her.

"I'm starting to doubt either of you fully comprehend what it is that I want," she retorted, "I want humanity to fear the Faunus," she stated, "to know that we demand respect!" she emphasized loudly, "I do not want to start a war with the humans that we cannot win!" she shouted, mainly towards Adam, who remained stoic underneath his mask.

"That's… where you're wrong," he responded. Genuine looks of surprise and confusion came across both Sienna and Hazel's faces as they saw him slowly approach the throne. "We can win a war against the humans," he proclaimed, "Not only because we have the support of Hazel's master," he mentioned, gesturing towards the guest, "but because the Faunus are the dominant species of this planet," he pointed out, "We're better than humans," he added, "We have everything humans have and more," he emphasized as he reached the last step up to the throne, "Humans shouldn't just fear the Faunus," he continued, "they should serve the Faunus…" he finished with a grin. Sienna didn't seem convinced.

"I've had enough of this conversation for tonight," she said, now speaking calmly, "Guards, take them away," she instructed with a signal of her right hand. The guards remained stationary. "I said take them away!" Sienna repeated angrily. Why weren't they obeying her commands?

"I will admit, Sienna," Adam chimed in, catching her attention, "you were right about my popularity," he confessed with a smirk, "My followers in Vale already see me as the true High Leader," he noted as he clenched his right fist in a triumphant manner, "And many here in Mistral feel the same," he added as Sienna growled at him. Just then, four more White Fang soldiers entered through the main doors, aiming their weapons into the room as their leader rose to her feet in shock. Adam surely wasn't their chosen leader… or was he?

"What are you doing?" Hazel asked gruffly. He wasn't expecting such a coup to happen…

"What's right for the Faunus," Adam responded, "From this day forward, I will be the one to lead the White Fang," he declared firmly. More soldiers revealed themselves from behind the pillars in the room, aiming their guns at Sienna. Her guards even pointed their spears at her. She quickly judged the situation, taken by surprise. Her eyes narrowed darkly.

"If you think I'll just step aside and follow beneath you…" she began angrily, not noticing Adam placing his hand onto the hilt of his weapon, "you're wro-!" A sword pierced through her torso, much to her shock as her eyes shook.

"I know," Adam remarked, lifting the blade to make it slide deeper into her body as she felt her feet leave the floor beneath her. Shaking uncontrollably from the damage she'd taken, she clenched her fists. Adam took advantage of her close proximity to rest his left hand onto her shoulder. "Thank you, Sienna," he said out of gratitude into her ear, "You were there when our people needed you," he noted, "but they need me now," he stated, "I'm sorry you couldn't see this through to the end," he apologized. With her teeth clenched in rage, Sienna lifted her left hand in an attempt to claw at his neck. But before she could make contact, Adam swiftly pulled his blade out of her body, making her yelp in agony as she fell to the floor and rolled down to the bottom of the steps. Hazel looked down at her now lifeless body, exposing a solemn expression. This wasn't supposed to happen… The White Fang soldiers withdrew their weapons. "Give our former leader a proper burial," Adam instructed to them as Hazel looked back at him in annoyance, "All who were here tonight will claim that Sienna was murdered by a human Huntsman," he told them, "Sienna Khan will become a martyr for our cause," he stated firmly, "her final act as high leader," he added. Two of the guards carried the deceased Faunus out of the room, while the others left as well. As Hazel watched them leave, he closed his eyes.

"When were you planning on telling me about that?" he asked Adam, who had withdrawn a cloth from his back pocket. He slid it slowly across the blade of Wilt, cleaning the blood off of it.

"This was my business," he responded darkly, "not yours," he pointed out.

"It's our business now," Hazel retorted, "and I don't appreciate you withholding things like that," he mentioned as he clenched his fists.

"Your master was concerned with Sienna's willingness to cooperate," Adam noted, letting off a grin, "Now she doesn't have to be," he assured. Hazel inwardly sighed.

"Nobody needed to die today…" he grumbled in frustration as he started to walk away. After a moment, Adam sat down on the empty throne, leaning back into it comfortably.

"I… disagree…" he remarked in farewell, continuing to grin.

 **X**

The Atlesian cargo ship had crashed into a forest just beyond the shoreline, as smoke from it billowed into the air. Just outside of it was Weiss, who was lying on the ground in pain after being flung out of the cargo hold upon the crash. Her clothes were dirtied, and she could barely move. Two figures then approached her. She managed to push herself up, if only slightly.

"Help… please…" she pleaded weakly. The two men looming over her were armed men, but they weren't soldiers. They had gruff looks and rough armoring around themselves.

"What do you think?" the one holding the shotgun asked. Another figure approached from afar. It was Raven Branwen, who held her Grimm-like helmet in her hands.

"I think… we just hit the jackpot," she remarked. Weiss' eyes widened in fright… right before Raven stomped her face with her right foot.

 **END**

 **NegaiFreak: Phew! Really thankful for transcripts of these episodes. They help the adaptation process go along swimmingly and give me ideas on how to use the crossover characters I have at my disposal.**

 **Blake Belladonna: For anyone else writing an adaptation, you might wanna see if there's a transcript you can use for future reference.**

 **NegaiFreak: You are the bookworm after all…**

 **Blake Belladonna: *blushes* Sh-Shut up! Anyways… you're going back to "The Challenge of a Lifetime" next, right?**

 **NegaiFreak: Absolutely! So until next time, please leave your reviews for this early Christmas present! See ya!**


	3. Unforseen Complications

**NegaiFreak: Welcome back to "RWBY: Omni Force"! We last left off on quite the cliffhanger, but now it's time get things rolling again!**

 **Ben Tennyson: So without further delay, let's get into it!**

 **RWBY: Omni Force**

Ben never liked meditating when he was younger. He was always more focused on strengthening his body rather than his mind. But after so much had gone down for him in recent years, with his marriage, his firstborn child… he needed this. A relaxed breath escaped his lips before he opened his eyes. He was sitting down cross-legged on the floor of Ghira's study, looking around at the furniture and greenery the room had. In all honesty, his office was bland in comparison to the vibrancy the study gave off. Maybe he could ask Ghira for tips… Well, after things were settled at least.

Ben stood up, stretching his arms out to their respective sides as he took a deep inhale through his nose. As he was about to leave, he looked at the couch momentarily. Ever since he met Blake, he always knew she was… distant. Seeing her rekindle her old relationships with her parents and Sun made him realize just how damaged she must've been from the aftermath of Beacon's fall. From what Gaara had told him the night she left, she had seen her once beloved friend slice off the arm of another. Ben exhaled. He knew Blake had gone through a lot. But at the same time, she'd been pushing everyone away. And he called her out for it.

 **FLASHBACK**

 _Blake's rant echoed throughout the study. Sun could easily tell she felt guilty about him getting hurt because of Ilia. And Ben knew it, too. But he wasn't about to let her just get away with what she was saying._

" _Those aren't the words of a hero," he said, catching her attention, "They're the words of a coward," he stated rather bluntly. A mixture of confusion and astonishment came across Blake's face. "Perfect fit, considering you're part cat," the Biomnitrix bearer added._

" _What's…_ _ **that**_ _supposed to mean?" Blake asked, narrowing her eyes onto him. Normally, Ben made jokes with a smug smirk. But he looked dead serious now._

" _Isn't it obvious… pussy?" he retorted. Blake blinked in surprise. Sun did a double take. Did they just hear him right?_

" _Excuse me?!" the cat Faunus yelled as she angrily approached Ben, pointing at him accusingly, "Don't think that just because you're the bigshot on the Omni Force that you can just waltz in and-!" Ben grabbed her by the wrist, halting her from shouting further._

" _From what I remember, you're the one who wants to run from these problems," he pointed out, "I might be a little harsh, but that's apparently the only way to get it through to you," he mentioned, letting go of her wrist as she let her arm down. A look of genuine shock was on her face. It was like a child being told a firm 'No' after demanding something for so long._

" _Blake…" Sun chimed in, catching their attentions as they saw him sit up, "Ben's right…" he admitted, "Well, kinda…" he corrected sheepishly, "You think you're being selfless… but you're not," he told her, much to her surprise as she blinked, "Yeah, that chameleon friend of yours got me pretty good," he confessed, "But I'd do it all again if it meant protecting you," he affirmed firmly._

" _That's what I call self-sacrifice," Ben noted, "If he's willing to put his life on the line for you, would you do the same?" he asked of Blake. She didn't have an answer. The one time her life could've ceased to be was when she saw Yang try to save her from Adam. And it haunted her that she didn't do anything to try and stop it._

" _You can make your own choices, sure," Sun added, "But you don't get to make ours," he stated, "When your friends fight for you, it's because we want to," he said to her, "So_ _stop pushing us out_ _," he finished in a hardened tone, "It hurts more than anything the bad guys could ever do to us," he mentioned as he turned his head away._

" _We need to face this together, not apart," Ben told her, "So try all you want, we're leaving you behind," he declared. A shaky breath left Blake's lips. She was… confused, but also grateful. The two men in the room, one who she knew for the longest time, while the other she'd only recently met, were willing to be at her side. Was she willing to stand with them? Even with all the hardships she feared would come?_

 **END FLASHBACK**

"Heh," Ben chuckled. He had a low opinion of Blake back then. Now he saw her in a different light. She was still aloof and blunt, but she exuded a newfound confidence and smile. The study door slid open.

"Ben," Blake's voice uttered out, causing him to turn around and see her there, "we're about to head out if you're coming," she told him.

"Yeah, coming," he replied, following her out. In the main hall, Ghira was wearing glasses, pacing back and forth. He was looking at a piece of paper in his hands. Upon it was his speech. A speech talking about the recent happening around Menagerie. Kali and Sun were there as well, with former seated on the sofa, while the latter sat next to a column, waiting for him to be ready. He stopped pacing, taking one last look at what he had written.

"Hah…" he sighed deeply as he put his left hand onto his head, shaking it in frustration. This was not something he was particularly thrilled about doing… Just then, his wife placed a reassuring hand onto his right shoulder, getting his attention.

"Are you ready?" she asked of him.

"…Yes," he answered after a moment, "It won't be easy for the people to hear," he pointed out, "but the truth often isn't," he noted, taking a brief pause, "I know they'll do the right thing," he assured confidently as his daughter and Ben entered the front hall. She went up to him, placing a hand onto his right arm before snuggling against him affectionately, while Kali did the same. They then were taken by surprise when they heard a third hand come upon the chieftain's back. He turned his head to see Sun there.

"You got this," he said softly. The Belladonnas each gave him a look, enticing him to back away as he sheepishly smiled.

"Alright, showtime," Ben remarked, alleviating the awkward tension in the hall.

"Right," Ghira agreed with a chuckle, taking off his glasses as he and his family headed toward the doors.

"How do you do it?" Sun asked Ben in a whisper.

"Just gotta know when you need to speak," the Biomnitrix bearer remarked vaguely in reply, much to the monkey Faunus' chagrin as he groaned. Ghira pushed the doors open with a light slam to follow. He and his family headed down to the podium just in front of their home, and a large crowd had gathered before them. Some of the individuals in the audience had press badges, holding up scrolls to record the upcoming announcements. As Ben and Sun came down after the Belladonnas, the former noticed the Albain brothers in the crowd, bowing their heads. The Biomnitrix bearer narrowed his eyes onto them. Menagerie guards were also amongst the murmuring crowd. As Ghira reached the podium and took his place with the others standing alongside him, he raised his right hand. The crowd quickly quieted themselves.

"Thank you all for assembling here," Ghira greeted as an opening, "I wanted to take time to address some of the rumors that have been circulating around our island," he explained to the crowd, "I believe that it is important for the people of this territory to understand the truth," he noted, "No matter how you feel about the human race, I think we can all agree that the event now known as the Fall of Beacon was a tragedy," he told the crowd, "A tragedy that will set both man _and_ Faunus-kind back," he emphasized, "While the main aggressor is still unknown," he continued, "we do have official confirmation that Adam Taurus…" he kept going, glaring over at the bowed heads of Corsac and Fennec, "the leader of a powerful splinter group working inside the White Fang, was partially responsible for these attacks," he said, turning his attention back to the audience, "His actions not only tarnished the reputation of an organization originally created to bring peace and equality to all," he kept going, "but to our entire race," he stated, "With each day that this man remains unpunished, it becomes increasingly difficult to condemn those that look down upon us," he mentioned. The crowd started to murmur amongst themselves.

Ben had only heard stories about Adam. Once a revered figure in the White Fang, now seen as a murderous psychopath… at least to those present at the Fall of Beacon. Ben wasn't afraid of him per say, but rather what he was instilling onto others. Ghira raised his hand again, quieting the murmurs amongst the crowd.

"Recently, a spy from the same splinter group set their sights on this very home," he told them, "My own daughter, Blake, and her friends did their very best to apprehend this individual," he added as they just looked on at the crowd, "While they were unsuccessful after being physically assaulted and seriously injured," he emphasized, "they _were_ successful in obtaining the assailant's Scroll," he stated, taking out the device from the left side of his coat, holding it up for the crowd to see, "With this, we have been able to ascertain that Adam Taurus has plans to overthrow the current leader of the White Fang, Sienna Khan," he said, causing the crowd to start murmuring loudly in concern, "and take over the reins himself," he added.

Ben wasn't too surprised when he learned the news. If Adam couldn't do whatever he wanted in the organization under whoever was in charge, then he'd have to ascend to that title himself. And by any means necessary, most likely.

"His radical plans do not stop there," Ghira continued, not taking a moment to calm the crowd, "The documents on this scroll proclaim his next target to be Haven Academy and its attached CCT Tower," he explained as he held up the device again, "Their plan is to strike on the last full moon before the beginning of the fall semester, roughly two months from today," he told the crowd as he set the scroll down onto the podium, "I have sent my swiftest messenger to the government of Mistral," he assured as the crowd was quieting down to listen carefully, "but I believe we have a greater responsibility," he said, taking a moment to pause.

Ben noticed Fennec's wolf-like ears twitch at the mention of the messenger Ghira notified the crowd of. Deciding to ignore it, the Biomnitrix bearer looked back at the chieftain as he was about to begin his next set of remarks.

"My relationship with the White Fang has been... an interesting one," he confessed to the crowd as he glanced off to the side for a moment, "Years ago, I led the organization to help try and create a world where I, and every Faunus who wished," he started to say,"could walk alongside the human race," he told the crowd, "And while I believe we made great strides toward this goal," he continued, "it was made clear to me that the people both in and out of the White Fang wanted faster results," he noted, closing his left hand into a fist, "So I stepped down," he kept going, "and Sienna Khan was appointed as my successor," he said, "It's true that I do not fully condone many of her methods," he admitted to the audience, "What I _do_ condone… is what Sienna fights for," he emphasized, "the idea that the Faunus and humans are, and should be… equal…" he explained softly, "Adam Taurus does not seem to have that goal in mind," he noted with a hardened tone, "What he has done… benefits no one but himself…" he pointed out, allowing the crowd to start murmuring again, "I think it's time that the Faunus showed the world… that we are equals!" he declared, as some cheers came out from those in the crowd, "Time that we snuff out this splinter group," he continued, "and restore the White Fang to what it once was!" he stated proudly.

Almost all of the crowd was clapping and cheering. They wanted peace and equality. Not what Adam was trying to accomplish.

"To do this, I the answer is clear!" Ghira proclaimed, "We must go to Haven and protect it at all costs!" he exclaimed emphatically. The atmosphere suddenly changed once the crowd stopped cheering. Ben could see several anxious faces in the crowd. They looked hesitant. Upon seeing this, Ghira widened his eyes slightly. He hadn't expected such hesitance, especially after they seemed enthusiastic about stopping Adam. He cleared his throat. "Before we proceed any further, I'd like to invite my daughter to come and share her story," he told the crowd, causing Blake to perk up in surprise, "Not only as a former member of the White Fang, but also as a survivor of the Fall of Beacon," he pointed out, gesturing toward her. Ben could easily tell she looked anxious stepping up to the podium, facing her father. "You can do this," he assured gently.

"TRAITORS!" a familiar voice shouted from the crowd, much to their surprise.

"Shit…" Ben cursed under his breath. Within the crowd, a white blanket was unveiled to reveal Ilia there as she stood up, wearing her Grimm mask as her teeth were clenched. She was angry. Some crowd members backed away from her. Blake blinked in surprise before glaring back at her.

"Ilia…" Sun muttered out with his own glare.

"Cowards..." the White Fang member snarled, "After everything the humans have done to us," she began angrily, looking around at the rest of the shocked crowd, "everything they've put us through," she continued, "you're asking us to help them?!" she exclaimed. Ben narrowed his eyes.

"I know we haven't been treated fairly..." Ghira noted, trying to calm her down as he had his hands raised in a placating manner.

"Where was their help when the Dust companies treated our people like slaves?!" Ilia asked emphatically, "Where was their help when Kingdoms hunted Faunus just for being who they are?!" she continued, stepping toward the center of the crowd, "Where was my help when my parents were killed in a Dust mine?!" she screamed in fury, " _WHERE_?!" she emphasized, gritting her teeth.

"Young lady, progress takes patience and cooperation…" Ghira pointed out, though he looked rather nervous himself.

"The Belladonnas are the worse kind of Faunus!" Ilia accused suddenly in response, causing Blake to clench her teeth in frustration, "They want us to work with the same people that are trying to hold us down!" she proclaimed as the press members of the audience aimed their scrolls to record her ranting, "If you truly, truly want to help your people..." she continued, not noticing that Sun was sneaking around the crowd, getting closer to her, "now is the time to support Adam, not the Belladonnas!" she instructed firmly, "He will bring about the future that you deserve," she assured, "And if you are unwilling to fight," she kept going, "know that the White Fang will do it for you!" she declared. Sun was ready to pounce… but never got the chance.

"Hey!" Ben suddenly shouted, catching everyone's attention as he stepped up to the podium, standing beside Ghira and Blake.

"Is that… a human?" one person asked in a whisper as a murmuring began amidst the crowd, stunned to see a human on Menagerie, especially alongside their chieftain.

"Ben, what are you-?" Blake stopped her question as she saw the Biomnitrix bearer stick his hand out in front of her.

"So…" he began toward Ilia, "the White Fang's gonna fight for everyone here?" he inquired, crossing his arms, "They're gonna do whatever they can to make humans accept them?" he continued to guess. Ilia didn't respond, balling her fists. "Well, I'll tell you this," he offered, "You kill so much as one human in the name of Faunus-kind," he kept going, "you're painting a target all over Menagerie," he pointed out. The crowd murmured again. Most were citing what a good point Ben was making. Ilia clenched her teeth again.

"Are you actually listening to this human?!" she shouted angrily, "Why would you think the White Fang doesn't support every Faunus in this wretched world?!" she asked as she pointed towards the ground beneath her feet.

"The way I see it," Ben began, "the Fang's only looking out for their interests, not everyone's," he noted to surprise, "Funny, huh?" he remarked, "I don't remember this crowd giving you applause for your little rant," he pointed out with a smirk. Ilia's fists shook.

"If you expect any of us to fight for the humans, then-!"

"I expect the Faunus to fight for the Faunus," Ben interjected, "If that should mean stopping some terrorists from destroying another academy, then so be it," he stated firmly, "As long as no one stands up and says that what they're doing isn't your way," he continued, "you're still not gonna get the equality you deserve," he told them. Most of the Faunus couldn't believe it. Ben was making sound points about the state of their kind's image in the world of Remnant. And how it was being tarnished by Adam Taurus' ideals in the White Fang. And this was all being told to them… by a human?

"Heh, heh…" Ilia chuckled, catching his attention as he arched an eyebrow, "Do you really think the White Fang doesn't stand a chance against the human race?" she wondered aloud, "We have more capabilities than humans could ever hope to have!" she proclaimed, drawing her Lightning Lash, "What makes _you_ think you can stand up to us?" she asked Ben. The Omni Force leader could tell it was a bluff. She knew exactly what he was capable of. But he decided to play along.

"Kid," he began, "you _really_ shouldn't have asked that," he said. Taking a couple of steps, he then hopped off of the stage, enveloping himself in a green flash of light. As the light subsided, the crowd gasped. Landing down on the ground was a bipedal, dinosaur-like creature that was about twelve feet in height. His skin was a tannish brown with a lighter tan on the inner part of his body. He had a long tail, wearing black briefs and a green sash over his shoulder, where the Biomnitrix symbol was at his chest. His body was mostly muscular, and wrinkles were evident upon his face. As he sauntered forward a few steps, Ilia backed down. She wasn't expecting Ben to call her bluff like this. And the rest of the crowd was left stunned. Even Corsac and Fennec were shocked by the sudden transformation of the human. Who was he?

"RRRRAAAAAAHHHH!" Humungousaur roared loudly into the sky, causing some crowd members to flinch. He then charged toward Ilia, enticing her to quickly pull the trigger of her weapon to make the lash whip around a nearby tree, reeling herself away. Everyone gasped as they saw her flee, while the Vaxasaurian came to a stop. "Hmph," he scoffed, looking around at the rest of the crowd, with the press members aiming their scrolls toward him, "My name's Ben Tennyson," he introduced, "and I'm here to help stop whatever the White Fang's planning next," he declared firmly, enveloping himself in another green flash of light before turning back into his human self. The shocked murmurs amidst the crowd seemed to calm down. Some were just flabbergasted by the Biomnitrix bearer, while others were still just trying to comprehend what had just happened. Corsac and Fennec exchanged a look before they stared at Ben, who was approached by Sun.

"Guess you picked the right moment…" he remarked to the Omni Force leader. He just looked over at the stage, seeing the frustrated expressions on Blake and Ghira's face, while he also saw concern from Kali.

"I just hope they get their moment, too," he said, walking back over to them. The brewing turmoil was now becoming much more complicated…

 **X**

This was weird. Well, weird enough to be called weird by those around Oscar. He sat upon a red armchair, nervously looking at the people around him.

"Did he age backwards?" Nora wondered.

"He's possessed!" Jaune exclaimed.

"Or reincarnated!" Ren suggested.

"Oh! Isn't it weird?" Ruby chimed in. Oscar was… uncomfortable to an extent. These people he had never met were fawning over him because of the fact he was apparently their former professor.

"It is very weird, yes…" he admitted sheepishly as he lowered his head.

"Hey, give the kid some space!" Starlight advised to the huntsmen and huntresses around him, catching their attentions, "This whole thing's new to him, too, ya know…" she pointed out as she trotted over. The Team RNJR members all stepped back together, letting off nervous chuckles.

"Let's all just take a second and remember that this is very overwhelming for everyone," Qrow mentioned, emerging from the kitchen with a mug in his hand, while Erza and Smoke followed him in.

"Thanks," Oscar said in gratitude as he turned to the Omni Force members and the huntsman. Qrow handed him the mug before he and Smoker took their seats on the couch next to him. Ruby and Nora sat down on the couch perpendicular to theirs, while the others remained standing.

"Are you feeling all right?" Erza asked of Oscar, getting his attention.

"Uh, fine, thanks…" he stuttered in response. He then shared a brief look with Ruby, who giggled, causing him to blush. "Ah, sorry!" he apologized, turning his head away, "It's just I've never really met huntsmen and huntresses before…" he admitted sheepishly.

"Well, uh… we've never met a person with two souls!" she pointed out in response, "So… first times all around," she noted. Oscar let off a smile as he turned back to Ruby, chuckling a little.

"Ahem," Smoker fake coughed, catching his attention.

" **N** ot to break up the whole 'getting-to-know-you' game," Qrow chimed in with a grin, "but we need to have a talk," he said, "Mind showing us your little parlor trick, kid?" he asked of Oscar.

"Eh…" he groaned in response, lowering his head briefly, "Yeah, okay," he concurred, "Just so you know, I'll still be here," he assured to the rest of the group. The team RNJR members gave off confused looks toward each other, wondering what that meant. Erza and Starlight seemed just as perplexed. Oscar then lowered his head and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. Suddenly, a green and white aura shined from his body. He opened up his eyes, which now radiated an interesting glow as he smiled.

" **It is so very good to see you again, students,** " a familiar voice overlapping with several others, including Oscar's, greeted from the boy's mouth.

"…Whoa," Starlight uttered with widened eyes. Team RNJR and Erza shared brief looks of confusion again.

"Wait… what just happened?" Jaune asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Professor… Ozpin?" Ren guessed unsurely.

"Correct," the former headmaster answered, with his voice now sounding like a more dignified version of Oscar's, "And though I may be the one speaking, Oscar is still present mentally," he mentioned assuredly, "He's merely handed over the control, so to speak," he explained.

' _Just don't make us do anything embarrassing…_ ' Oscar mentally requested.

"So it's a form of possession…" Erza realized as she moved closer to him.

"And you must be Miss Scarlet," Ozpin noted, causing her to blink in surprise, "Qrow and Smoker informed us about your presence here as well," he added, looking over at the two on the other couch, "I truly appreciate it," he told her.

"So… what exactly just happened?" Starlight asked, chiming into the conversation. Ozpin chuckled at her question

"I'm afraid this all must be very perplexing," he pointed out.

"And alarming, and bizarre, and just _really_ kind of hard to believe overall!" Nora listed off emphatically.

"Easy, princess…" Smoker remarked as he readied a cigar in his hand. Ozpin chuckled.

"It's good to see you children still have your sense of humor," he noted, assured for the moment… before he started frowning, "I know you've all been through tremendous hardship already," he realized in shame, " **I'm sorry,** " he apologized, with his voice overlapping with others again.

"I mean… it's not your fault…" Ruby responded, trying to reassure him.

" **It's** _ **all**_ **my fault…** " he replied, lowering his head. Qrow got up from his seat, heading ack into the kitchen with the mug still in hand. " **I told you once that I made more mistakes than any man, woman, and child on this planet,** " Ozpin continued, "and I wasn't exaggerating," he emphasized, regaining his normal voice, "I'm... cursed…" he confessed… rather bluntly, "For thousands of years, I've walked the surface of Remnant," he told them, " **living, dying, and reincarnating in** the body of a like-minded soul," he listed off in explanation with his voice overlapping with others again, " **The Professor Ozpin you all met was not my first form,** " he pointed out, "and clearly wasn't my last…" he mentioned, "It's... an extraordinarily strenuous process… on everyone involved," he said slowly.

"So it _is_ reincarnation…" Starlight noted curiously as she stood beside Ren.

"So who… what… are you?" Jaune asked, correcting himself.

"I am the combination of countless men who've spent their lives trying to protect the people of Remnant," Ozpin replied, while Qrow walked back into the room, handing him the mug he had, now filled with steaming tea, "With every rebirth, my soul is eventually merged with another and I am changed," he told the group, " **but my memories stay with me,** " he added," **This curse was bestowed upon me by the gods… because I failed to stop Salem in the past,** " he explained, staring at the reflection in his drink," **But we must stop her now,** " he stated firmly. A tension filled the air of the room. All anyone knew of Salem was that she was the one who controlled the Grimm, the one who was the mastermind behind the Fall of Beacon… and the one after the relics… Smoker let a puff of smoke escape his lips as his cigar hung loosely from his mouth.

"And how do we do that?" Ruby finally asked Ozpin. He leaned back in his chair, bringing up his right leg.

"We start… by ensuring the safety of the Relic of Knowledge," he instructed in response.

 **X**

"Pah…!" Law gasped as he crawled upon the sandy shore. He breathed heavily and quickly, trying to get some air back into his body. He was underwater for what felt like five minutes, unable to swim to the surface of the lake…

"Ergh…" Danny grunted as he slowly got onto his feet behind him, no longer in his ghost form, "Dammit…" he muttered out, rubbing at his head in agony. It was throbbing. "Where's… Weiss?" he asked, glancing around. It was dark, but the moon shined brightly overhead. Bright enough to give the two visibility.

"Gah…" Law grunted as he stood up finally, holding onto his left hip. A few ribs were broken, no doubt. He and Danny took a great fall after all.

"Sorry…" the half-ghost teen apologized, getting his attention, "If I had gone intangible from the start and grabbed her…" he started to say, gritting his teeth in frustration.

"Huh…" Law exhaled, "Nothing we can do about it, Phantom," he told him, "Just be glad you woke up when you did, or we'd both be dead," he pointed out.

"…R-Right…" Danny stuttered in agreement. The pirate then pulled out his MPG, pressing his thumb against the center icon. A round, holographic map then appeared over it. There was a single marking blinking ahead of their current position… and it looked far. "Weird…" Danny said, "I could've sworn I saw smoke nearby…" he noted, "Well… at least when the sun was still up…" he corrected sheepishly.

"Let's just find the ship first," Law instructed, letting out a pained grunt as he took a step forward.

"Hey, you okay?" Danny asked in concern.

"Banged up, but fine enough to move," Law retorted in response, "Now let's go," he advised sternly. Danny looked at him in shock. No doubt they were both in pain. Yet Law wanted to press on. The half-ghost teen looked at his hand. The hand that failed to grab Weiss when he could've…

"Huh…" he sighed in frustration, following Law into the woods beyond the shore. After a while, the two of them reached a clearing.

"There it is," the pirate said as he and Danny looked at the dropship crashed through the earth.

"Jeez…" the half-ghost teen muttered out, having a green light hover over his right hand to illuminate the area around them. He and Law split up, going around the ship in different directions. They noticed the bay door had opened, and a small trail was evident in the dirt. "Hey, I think she might've crawled out!" Danny yelled, almost excited to know she was probably still alive.

"Can't say the same for this bastard…" Law muttered, causing the half-ghost teen to perk up in surprise. He went over toward the cockpit, seeing what the pirate was looking at. His eyes widened.

"Oh god…" he uttered out. The pilot hadn't made it. His body had gone through the windshield, with the glass having impaled his torso.

"Let's camp out here tonight," Law said, turning to Danny, "We try searching the way we are now, we might just be asking for trouble…" he mentioned before his teammate could offer an argument.

"But… where's Weiss then?" he asked. Law looked at his MPG.

"Far from here," he answered, "But… so long as she's in that spot by morning, we'll get her back," he assured confidently. The green light faded over Danny's hand as he balled it into a fist in frustration. Where was Weiss?

"Ugh…" the former heiress groaned as she awoke, still dirtied from the crash as she was lying upon the ground. The first thing she saw was that her wrists were bound by rope. As she sat up, she looked at her surroundings. For one, she was in a cage. And around that was a walled off barricade of spiked wooden poles. Tents were nearby and torches were ablaze. Weiss noticed that right in front of her were the two men who had found her earlier that evening. One was drinking from a huge bottle, while the other sat next to him atop the stack of crates they were upon. The latter then noticed that Weiss was awake as she narrowed her eyes onto him. He started chuckling to her surprise.

"Well, well, well…" he repeated, smacking his partner as he was guzzling down his drink, making him arch forward in surprise, "look who's awake…" he noted. The other bandit chuckled. Weiss checked her surroundings again.

"Wha… what's going on?" she stuttered out, "Where am I?" she asked. There was panic in her tone.

"You know..." a feminine voice began as a tent flap opened, revealing a young woman with tan-colored skin, short brown hair and icy blue eyes. She had a tattoo of a bird rising from flowers on her left arm. She wore a brown vest over a torn white shirt, with a collar that appeared to spike up behind her neck. She had maroon-colored pants on with the right side rolled up to her thigh. She also wore dark brown knee guards that went down to her brown boots."I never thought I'd see a Schnee in this camp," she admitted as she sauntered over.

"Vernal?!" the scarred bandit yelped as he and his partner hopped off of the crates, standing to attention as the latter of the two hid his bottle behind his back.The woman walked over to Weiss' cage, holding her Myrtenaster in her right hand. The captive let off a glare, getting onto her feet. Her captor admired her weapon, rubbing her fingers across its blade.

" _What_ do you want?" Weiss asked as her eyes locked onto Vernal.

"Straight to the point," she commented in response,"I like it," she remarked, "We don't normally deal in trafficking people," she pointed out, "not really worth our time…" she added as she continued to admire Myrtenaster, "But, once we realized we had a Schnee," she continued, pointing the tip of the weapon's blade toward the captive, "that changed," she stated. Weiss steeled herself, glaring at her.

"You're going to ransom me back to my father," she realized, "is that it?" she inquired to Vernal, who pulled the blade back as she smirked.

"It's a shame you're a Schnee," she noted, "You'd probably do quite well around here," she mentioned with a roll of her head.

"I would _never_ sink to your level," Weiss retorted defiantly. Vernal's expression shifted into a frown.

"Just keep quiet and cooperate and you'll be back in your mansion before you know it," she advised, starting to walk away from the cage. However, she stopped and turned to look back at the captive. "Don't make this complicated," she added.

"What's going to make this complicated is when my sister finds out _I_ didn't make it to Mistral," Weiss rebutted. A silence filled the air. "You know my sister, don't you?" she guessed, "Winter Schnee? Special Operative of the Atlas Military?" she questioned on rhetorically, "She's in Mistral now," she continued as Vernal had her back turned still, "and when she hears I'm missing, it won't take her long to find me…" she told her captor, "and you," she remarked with a confident grin. Suddenly though, the other bandits nearby started laughing, much to her surprise. "What's so funny?" she asked demandingly. Vernal let out her own laugh, turning around.

"Oh, I don't know if it's more funny or sad," she began, "but you're clearly out of the loop," she said, "Your sister… isn't in Mistral anymore," she told Weiss as she blinked in astonishment, "No Atlas personnel are in Mistral anymore," she added on. A panic was starting to form in Weiss' head again. "General Ironwood closed the borders and recalled all his little troops and tin cans," Vernal mentioned as she walked over to the cage again, "No one is coming to rescue you," she finished as she leaned toward the captive, who actually seemed scared now. The bandits laughed again as Vernal walked away, while Weiss closed her eyes forlornly, shaking her head. She could only hope that Danny and Law were okay and able to find her…

 **X**

"This is perfect!" Nora exclaimed as she hopped up from her seat, "We were stuck at a dead end," she noted as she crossed her arms into an x-shape, "but now, we can just take little cute boy Ozpin to Lionheart and have him set things straight!" she exclaimed, performing a variety of poses before gesturing toward the headmaster.

"…Please don't call me that," he requested blankly.

"We're not sure that's the best idea…" Qrow admitted, chiming into the conversation.

"Ugh…" Nora groaned, pouting as she sauntered back over to the couch next to Ruby and Starlight, plopping herself down with her arms crossed.

"But… I thought the headmasters all took their orders from you," Ren pointed out, sounding confused.

"That was the intention," Ozpin replied, "Four lieutenants I can trust, especially during times of reincarnation," he added, "But Qrow told me about your meeting with Leonardo," he said as he got onto his feet, walking towards a painting of Mistral at the other end of the living room, holding his hands behind his back, "He isn't just behaving irrationally…" he noted, "he's disobeying specific instructions I had left him," he pointed out, "Something's wrong," he concluded, "I don't want to jump to conclusions…" he continued, "but I don't want to rule out any possibilities, either," he stated firmly, "No one outside of this room knows that I've paired with Oscar," he mentioned as his hand was placed upon his chin in thought, "and I think it may be best to keep it that way," he decided.

"I agree," Erza chimed in, catching his attention as he turned to her, "I also have my doubts about Lionheart," she admitted to the group's surprise.

"Wh-What do you mean?" Ruby stuttered in question. Erza sauntered over to Ozpin.

"Aside from his… lack of authority," she began, "his insistence that we wait to take on the Branwen Tribe is completely preposterous," she explained to the group.

"How so?" Jaune asked curiously.

"No offense to anyone else here, but I think Smoker, Starlight, and I are strong enough to handle a tribe of bandits," she responded, holding up her right hand in a placating manner, "Raven and the Spring Maiden are another story… but we'd have the advantage in numbers," she pointed out.

"So you're sayin' with the way Lionheart's acting…" Smoker began, letting another puff of smoke escape his lips, "he might be a traitor?" he guessed.

"WHAT?!" Ruby and Starlight exclaimed as they shot up onto their feet instantaneously, while the others widened their eyes in shock.

"Girls, please," Erza pleaded, catching their attentions, "I don't want to assume the worst, either…" she admitted.

"But you are correct, Miss Scarlet," Ozpin agreed, "We can't reveal too much to Leonardo at this point with what we know he's already done," he instructed to them.

"Play things close to the chest until we get a better hand," Qrow realized, chiming back into the conversation. Ruby and Starlight looked at each other with worried expressions. They weren't sure if keeping things from Haven's headmaster was the right call. But they rescinded from arguing, sitting back down on the couch.

"Now, we have two steps ahead of us," Ozpin said as he turned toward the rest of the group, "The first is enlisting the aid of more Huntsmen," he told them as he raised up his left index finger.

"But the Mistral council—"

"Doesn't own every Huntsman in the Kingdom," Qrow pointed out, interjecting Ren's comment, "and I've been here enough times to know where we can find some more," he assured to the group.

"So long as they're trustworthy," Ozpin remarked in response.

"Heh," Qrow laughed, "You can trust them to put up a good fight," he noted in assurance, "I'll throw together a list tonight," he promised, putting his left foot onto the table in front of him. All of a sudden, one of its legs snapped, causing the mug upon it to break into pieces and spill out tea onto the floor below as he gasped. It also caused the ashtray Smoker was using to spill as well, right as he was about to rub out his cigar.

"Good luck with that," Nora remarked, knowing full well about his Semblance.

"Nice…" Smoker grumbled. Qrow groaned as he and the former marine started to clean up the mess below their feet, gathering the pieces of the mug.

"After that, we can move on to step two," Ozpin chimed in, regaining control of the conversation as he trotted over to his armchair.

"What's step two?" Nora wondered aloud as she stood up with Ruby and Starlight. Ozpin grabbed his cane before turning around and looking towards the group.

"Getting you four into fighting shape," he responded. The members of team RNJR exchanged looks of confusion once again.

"But, uh, we already know how to fight," Ruby pointed out with a stutter. Ozpin quickly aimed his cane at her, causing her to flinch in surprise.

"You can only fight so long as you have Crescent Rose," he pointed out to her, "but you're still lacking in hand-to-hand combat," he noted as she frowned.

"Well… uh… yeah…" she sheepishly admitted with a shrug. Erza chuckled. Ozpin then swung his cane and aimed it towards Jaune.

"Mister Arc," he continued, "I'm glad to hear you've improved, but sorry to say, you've yet to unlock your Semblance," he noted, causing him to frown as well and look away, "All of you still have a-ways to go before you're ready to pose any real threat against Salem and her forces," he explained to them, "And though Oscar can give me temporary control, he'll need to strengthen his body and his Aura," he added.

' _Wait… what?_ ' Oscar uttered mentally in confusion.

"He'll inherit my muscle memory in time," Ozpin noted with a twirl of his cane, planting it against the floor, "but practice will expedite the process," he assured confidently.

"But if Qrow's out looking for Huntsmen," Ruby began, "then who's going to teach us?" she asked, arching an eyebrow. Propelling himself off of the floor with his cane, Ozpin span counterclockwise into a barrel roll before landing onto the seat of the armchair, twirling his cane.

" **Well, I believe I was the headmaster of Beacon Academy,** " he remarked with overlapping voices again. The team RNJR members had various looks on their faces. Ruby looked to be ready to burst into a fit of excitement with a wide smile, Jaune had his hands upon his cheeks as he was flabbergasted, Nora had an exasperated expression, and Ren just looked surprised. "We have approximately one month before classes resume at Haven," Ozpin noted, "If Salem were to plan an attack," he continued, "it would make sense that it would occur prior to students' return," he explained, "It's not much time, but it's better than nothing," he mentioned as he stopped twirling his cane, letting off a smirk, "Just don't expect me to go easy on you," he remarked.

"Or us," Erza chimed in, catching their attentions as she and Starlight stepped forward, "We'll be happy to assist with your training, Professor," she promised. He chuckled.

"Much appreciated, Miss Scarlet," he replied. At that moment, his body glowed green and white again, returning control of the body to Oscar. He yelped at the moment he realized he was standing on the cushiony surface of the armchair, struggling to keep his balance before falling backwards with it, dropping the cane in the process.

"Ugh…" he groaned in pain, "You've gotta be kidding me…" he muttered out as the others looked at him with various expressions of concern.

"All right, up and at 'em," Smoker said, picking the boy up and getting him onto his feet, "So…" he began, lighting another cigar that he stuck in his mouth, "where do we start?" he asked with a grin.

 **X**

A small fire was alit beside Danny and Law as they lied beside the cargo ship, staring up at the night sky overhead. Fortunately, they had managed to find food and medical supplies in the wreckage. Danny had his head and right arm bandaged, while Law had some around his torso.

"Ergh…" the pirate grunted as he lied down on the ground, "After that fall, I'm glad nothing else broke…" he grumbled. Danny just continued to stare up at the night sky. He felt guilty. But was there anything that could've really been done? Like Law said, it was a freak accident.

"Huh…" he sighed, "Who do you think has her?" he wondered aloud, catching the pirate's attention.

"No one good…" he answered, tipping his cap over his eyes, "At least no one good enough to try and help her find us…" he added in frustration. Danny would've chuckled at that. He hoped Weiss was okay.

At the campground, the two bandits had fallen asleep by the cage. Upon noticing, Weiss turned around, opening her hands and forming a summoning white glyph over them. A small Arma Gigas came out from it, readying its sword. Weiss smiled. She looked at its blade and nodded confidently. She wasn't about to remain a captive.

 **END**

 **Ben Tennyson: Damn, you got this chapter done pretty quick.**

 **NegaiFreak: All things considered, there isn't much to cover in terms of action and whatnot. Plus, the transcripts really helped me get the whole thing together.**

 **Yang Xiao Long: So I'm up next, right?**

 **NegaiFreak: Yep! And I'll hopefully have your chapter done before the end of this weekend!**

 **Yang Xiao Long: Sweet!**

 **Sunset Shimmer: Just remember that NF's still got studying and shorts to do…**

 **NegaiFreak: That's right! But stay on the lookout, everyone! I'll see you later!**


	4. Lighting the Fire

**NegaiFreak: Ladies and gentlemen, we're back with another chapter for "RWBY: Omni Force"! And we're finally getting back into the action!**

 **Yang Xiao Long: 'Bout time, dude.**

 **Gaara: Yang.**

 **Yang Xiao Long: Oh relax, Sandman. NF's one of the best around when it comes to getting this stuff together!**

 **NegaiFreak: All too true. I need to do a short around you two someday…**

 **Yang Xiao Long: But until then, let's get back into "RWBY: Omni Force"!**

 **RWBY: Omni Force**

"Huh…" Gaara sighed from his office in the Sand Village. It hadn't been a busy day. There were no emergencies, no impending wars, absolutely nothing. He held his head in his hands before staring over at his MPG. It had been 3 months since he had gotten in contact with anyone. That included his team and his fellow squadron leaders. He still wondered if Yang even wanted to contact him. Was she going to just leave him hanging?

All of a sudden, his MPG buzzed and glowed. He immediately grabbed it, pressing the center icon. Normally, he didn't try to rush, but nowadays, he'd always answer as quickly as possible. And the one calling him wasn't who he expected…

" _How are you doing, Gaara?_ " Taiyang Xiao Long greeted in question as his hologram appeared over the MPG. The Kazekage let off a grin. He and Yang's father were close, oddly enough. Taiyang respected the fact that he was a strong leader of both his Omni Force squadron and an entire village. Before he left his girlfriend's world, Gaara left her father a Universal Tracker to contact him in case Yang couldn't or didn't want to call him herself.

"I'm doing fine, sir," he answered with a smile.

" _Oh,_ " Taiyang uttered, sounding surprised, " _So I guess you haven't heard…_ " he realized. Gaara blinked.

"Heard what?" he asked in confusion, tilting his head to the side. Taiyang grinned.

" _She's back,_ " he answered. Gaara's eyes widened in realization as he leaned back in his chair. After everything that had happened, this was something he was glad to hear. Relieved, in fact. " _So she didn't bother to tell you anything?_ " Taiyang inquired curiously.

"No, I hadn't received a word…" Gaara replied with a shake of his head.

" _That's… weird to say the least…_ " Taiyang noted as he shrugged, " _Anyways, she's heading up northern Anima right about now,_ " he mentioned.

"Anima…?" Gaara uttered out, "Why is she heading there?" he asked.

" _She's gonna go see her mother,_ " Taiyang answered. Now it made sense. Gaara had only heard of Raven Branwen after his girlfriend had mentioned that she saved her life once. He contemplated the situation in his head. " _You gonna go after her?_ " Taiyang guessed, catching his attention.

"No," the Kazekage responded simply, "I think she needs to settle this on her own," he concluded. Taiyang shrugged.

" _Your call,_ " he remarked with a grin, " _Stay well, Gaara,_ " he said in farewell.

"You too," the Kazekage replied before the hologram disappeared from his device, which stopped glowing, "Huh…" he sighed deeply in frustration. Why was he so hesitant about returning home? Was it guilt? Shame?

The image of girlfriend without her right arm flooded his mind. Seeing it bleed out brought a sickening feeling to his stomach. One emotion was keeping him from returning. One that he thought he buried away. Rage.

 **FLASHBACK**

 _Ruby left the room. Her sister had completely rejected her. What hope she had left from what happened at Beacon was now completely gone. She looked over and saw Gaara standing in the corner of the hall just outside of Yang's room. Ruby assumed he was here for his girlfriend. How could he not be after she went through such a horrific ordeal._

 _"...Have you... talked to her yet?" Ruby asked, catching his attention._

 _"Huh," he breathed out, "About to," he answered solemnly. His tone was all Ruby needed to hear. He had probably overheard the argument between her and Yang anyway._

 _"Thank you for coming, Gaara..." Ruby said in gratitude, giving off a small bow to the Kazekage. He grinned as she went back to her room and shut the door. A lot had happened. He reached into his pocket and pulled out an MPG. With all that had happened, a voice in his head told him that the time wasn't right. Ruby had just gone through unspeakable turmoil. She lost two friends in one day, her team was disbanded, and now this. He put the MPG away. Now wasn't the right time. He went over and opened the door to his girlfriend's room._

 _"Ruby, I told you that-!"_

 _"Yang," Gaara interjected, causing his girlfriend to silence herself upon hearing his voice. She turned to see him there._

 _"G-Gaara..." she stuttered. His eyes slightly widened. Her voice sounded... so weak and frail... This wasn't the girl he had fallen in love with. At least not now._

 _"I'm... sorry that I wasn't there for you," he apologized immediately. Now Yang's eyes widened._

 _"N-No! That wasn't-! I mean..." she tried to correct, sounding extremely nervous. Gaara grimaced. How could she be the same after what had happened? He looked over as what remained of her right arm. Had he been there... maybe things would've been different. He would never know. He pulled up a wooden chair and sat himself down beside her bed._

 _"Yang," he began, placing his right hand onto her left, "...I think we should take a break," he told her. A long silence passed. Yang shook her head in disbelief after that moment._

 _"T-Take a break?" she stammered in confusion, "Take a break from what?" she asked as her voice was breaking. Gaara grimaced again. He didn't want to do this... but he had to._

 _"Us," he responded, making her widen her eyes in disbelief, "Yang, you almost died not only because of my own negligence, but also because I felt that I could trust you on your own..." he confessed, much to her shock as tears started to well up in her eyes._

 _"G-Gaara..." she stuttered, shutting her eyes as the tears began streaking down her cheeks._

 _"Yang, I'm sorry..." he apologized, moving closer and touching his forehead against hers gently, "I just think we need some time apart to focus on what's important for the future..." he explained, kissing her tear-stained cheek. He moved back and looked into her tear-filled eyes._

 _"...Yeah..." she agreed, glancing down, "I think it's for the best, too..." she concluded. Gaara took a deep breath and stood up. He reached into his pocket and pulled out another MPG, setting it down onto the dresser._

 _"I gave your father a UT in case you can't talk to me yourself," he told her, "I promise I'll keep in touch," he stated firmly. Yang managed to smile a little._

 _"Yeah, thanks..." she replied in gratitude. Gaara left the room, hearing the quiet sobs a few moments after he shut the door. He grimaced in frustration._

 _"Was breaking up with her the right thing to do?" a voice asked, causing him to perk up and see Taiyang there with his arms crossed._

 _"You're asking me that?" Gaara questioned._

 _"I know, but..." Taiyang began to respond, looking off to the side, "she really loves you," he pointed out. Gaara gave off an ashamed expression. This was something he didn't want to do after all._

 _"We need this time apart after what's happened," he said firmly in reply. Taiyang gave off a sympathetic look._

 _"Okay," he responded, walking over and placing his hand onto the Kazekage's shoulder, "I trust you," he added. Gaara's eyes slightly widened. But he smiled to disregard it._

 _"Thank you, sir," he said in gratitude. He then walked off, heading down the stairs. He could still hear Yang's sobs in his head with every step. The girl he fell in love with was emotionally broken. And the one to blame..._

 _"Bye, Gaara," Ruby's voice said, catching his attention as he looked back to see her there at the top of the staircase, giving off a small grin. He gave her one back. Despite all that had happened at Beacon, he believed there was some trace of hope left to help save this world._

 **END FLASHBACK**

Even as Gaara smiled at the memory of Ruby taking a stand, he still felt troubled. Would he be able to help protect her world when the time came? He'd have to hope his fellow squadron leaders would fare better than him, also hoping for his girlfriend to be safe as well…

 **X**

When Yang had heard the shady man mention he was a part of her mother's tribe, she had to take a chance. They were riding together on her motorcycle through a forest, leaving a trail of dust in their wake as they headed down the dirt path. Yang almost did a double-take when the man mentioned his 'name'. Shad Y. Mann? It sounded too stupid to be true. But she didn't bother acting up over it. If Shad could get her to her mother, then it'd be worth it.

"How much further, pal?" she asked him as he was hanging off the back of her bike, looking around at their surroundings.

"This should just about it," he replied. As Yang turned her head away, he gave off a toothy grin. She stopped the bike in the middle of a clearing. "You wait here," Shad advised, disembarking from Bumblebee, "I'll go up ahead and make sure the coast is clear," he said, jogging off into the wooded area. Yang arched an eyebrow, slightly lowering her sunglasses before shaking her head out of annoyance. It was obviously a trap.

As birds chirped around her, she got off her bike, discarding her sunglasses, right sleeve, and coat tails. She stretched her arms up, both real and mechanical. She'd gotten used to her new arm relatively quickly. And the black and yellow paint job she gave it made the arm feel special to her. Like it was a second chance. She brought her arms down… and then she heard a click. She quickly turned around to block a gunshot with her right arm, leaving a puff of flames that dissipated quickly. Looking into the woods, she saw who tried to kill her. It was Shad. And he wasn't alone.

"I can't believe you were dumb enough to let me lead you here," he remarked as about a half a dozen other people were with him, all armed with weapons. Yang glanced around, seemingly unintimidated.

"Is this everyone?" she guessed. Shad chuckled.

"Yes, little lady," he answered in a sarcastic tone, "This is it," he said, gesturing toward his tribe mates, "Well, unless you count the whole rest of the camp back that way," he noted, pointing behind himself with his thumb. Curiously, Yang pointed her mechanical index finger in the same direction.

"That way?" she guessed. Shad gave off a confused grunt, glancing around at his comrades. They seemed just as perplexed, with one giving off a shrug.

"Yes," he finally answered, "That way," he remarked with a smirk.

"Good to know," Yang replied, "Thanks," she said, narrowing her eyes onto the group.

"Now to pay me back for this tooth," Shad began as he took a few steps towards Yang, "we're going to take your bike," he stated, "And you're going to take your lumps…" he remarked in addition, punching his left hand. Yang wasn't fazed at all. She just looked at her left arm before engaging the Ember Celica upon it. Some of the bandits blinked in surprise before they readied their weapons again, prepared to fight. Shad took out his pistol, which essentially had a knife edge at the handle. "You got the jump on me last time, sweetheart," he noted as he aimed his gun at her, while she just glared, "But you really ought to think twice about fighting all—"

Yang then engaged the gun upon her robotic arm as it popped out, much to everyone's surprise as they widened their eyes and gasped. They hadn't seen anything like that before. Unbeknownst to any of them, a certain figure was watching from afar within the woods.

"Alright…" Shad uttered, sounding somewhat anxious, "Get her!" he ordered. The bandits charged towards Yang. She gave off a nonchalant expression as she sauntered forward. The first man who approached tried to kick her, but she parried it with her left foot, followed by landing a left hook to his gut to make him lose his balance, tripping him with her right leg, and finally slamming him against the ground with her fist.

The next bandit attempted to strike her with his jagged knife, but she flipped back to evade his attack, kicking his arm. She then fired off a shot from her Ember Celica at his foot, making him spin around upon striking. As he tried to swipe at her again with his knife, she pivoted to evade it, kicking his arm away before landing a strong one to the chest to send him flying. Some of the bandits then began shooting at her, enticing her to use her robotic arm as a shield to deflect the bullets. As they rushed her, Yang quickly dashed back, flip-kicking the woman coming at her from behind before landing down. She then used her Ember Celica and robotic arm cannon to propel a roundhouse kick that knocked back three more of them.

The woman that tried to get her from behind came up to her again, only for her to miss her right hook onto Yang and ended up struck by a powerful one to her face, knocking her down. Another bandit with a jagged knife tried to sneak up on her from behind, but she blocked the blade with her robotic arm, using her Ember Celica to shoot herself around and land a right uppercut to the man's chin. She then pivoted around towards Shad to evade his next gunshot, grabbing his arm and stomping on his foot.

"AH-!" His agonized yelp was cut as she kneed his chin, sending him flying down to the ground. Three more bandits tried to get Yang from behind again, but she used her weapons to propel herself, landing another powerful roundhouse kick to their heads in one swing, making them fall over. Shad grunted as he pushed himself back onto his feet, aiming his gun at the aspiring huntress, who was easily throwing aside her foes.

He fired off a shot... but Yang moved her head away to evade it as it got lost in the shrubbery. She glared at Shad. He tried to fire again, only for his gun to jam. He panicked with a grimace, hitting it to try and get it to work. At that moment, Yang threw up her fists to knock down two more of the bandits, shooting herself towards Shad with her left fist reeled back. In a last ditch effort, he swung the knife edge of his weapon to try and stab her, only for her shoot herself over him with her Ember Celica. She spun around, landing behind him before striking him with a powerful punch to his back, sending him crashing into one of his still-standing tribe mates. They both fell over in pained grunts.

"Wow…" the figure watching from afar uttered in amazement. The whole group was down for the count. Yang felt her left hand twitch and shake, but she grabbed herself at the wrist, calming down with a quick breath.

"Who… are you?!" Shad coughed out as he slowly started to get up, "It doesn't even matter…" he muttered out, getting onto his feet as Yang was walking towards her motorcycle, "When Raven finds out what you did, you're dead!" he proclaimed with a toothy grin in spite of his bruises. Yang stopped.

"Possibly," she admitted in response with a sigh, "But I doubt it," she noted confidently, "I'm her daughter, after all," she said as she smirked. Shad blinked in surprise before his eyes widened.

" _I'm_ dead…" he realized, falling to the ground with a pained groan. As Yang made sure her things were gathered upon her bike, the mysterious figure looked on, crossing her arms over her chest as the sunlight reached her.

"Jeez…" Sunset Shimmer muttered out with a shake of her head, "I _seriously_ need to catch up…" she remarked as she looked on. Yang was something special, all right. Just how many newer Omni Force members were as special?

 **X**

The sun was setting in the distance, giving the Mistral sky an orange hue as birds flew by. With the team now set on preparing for their eventual battle with Salem, there was only one thing for them to do as they were gathered in the backyard.

"HIYAH!" Ruby exclaimed as she tried to land a right hook on Oscar, which he blocked with his left arm. He let off a smile, but then gasped as he had to quickly duck away from a roundhouse kick from his opponent's left leg. He then tried to land a left uppercut, but she evaded it. She parried two more attempted punches before trying to land her own, only to slide past Oscar as she went in too quickly, almost losing her balance as she flailed her arms. She tried a spin kick, but he jumped to dodge as well. Oscar then tried to land a punch, but she dashed by, taunting him by holding up her hands and sticking out her tongue.

"Man… Oz wasn't kidding," Jaune remarked, standing beside Nora and Starlight as they were observing the two train, "Oscar's picking up on this stuff fast," he noted, sounding impressed.

"I do think Ruby still needs work…" Erza admitted as she stood beside Smoker and a meditating Ren. As the two continued to spar, Oscar punched his opponent straight in the face. She recoiled from the blow, looking visibly angry as she growled.

"Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry!" Oscar quickly apologized… right before Ruby punched his face, making him fall a few feet away onto the ground.

"Ooh…!" Starlight yelped, wincing with Jaune and Nora.

"Ha!" Ruby laughed, "Yes! I did it!" she exclaimed triumphantly as she hopped. However, her brief moment of cheering was replaced with concern as she heard her sparring partner grunt in agony. "Oscar?" she uttered, looking back at him. He brought his right hand up to his head, groaning still.

' _You forgot to engage your Aura, again,_ ' Ozpin mentally noted as Oscar breathed heavily.

"Why didn't you tell me?!" he screamed.

' _Because this method makes you less likely to forget,_ ' Ozpin retorted. With a roll of his eyes, Oscar groaned and sat up. ' _Mind if I give it a shot?_ ' the headmaster offered suddenly. For a brief moment, Oscar's body stiffened briefly as his eyes glowed in a yellow flash of light.

" **Not bad, Miss Rose,** " Ozpin commented, "But Oscar doesn't have the years of training that you do," he noted to her, "Or _I_ do," he mentioned, shutting his eyes. His body shimmered green as he engaged his Aura. Jaune, Nora, and Starlight blinked in surprise. Meanwhile, Erza smirked. Ozpin then stood up.

"Oh, ha…" Ruby laughed nervously, realizing that her opponent was now the headmaster within the farmhand's body, "well, maybe we should uh... take a break…?" she suggested in a somewhat panicked tone as Ozpin readied his fists. He smirked as he charged at Ruby, who barely managed to defend herself by blocking three punches with her arms. However, she ended up taking a blow to the face that made her stumble back a few feet. Ozpin quickly ran out to close the gap between them, leaping up and landing a spin kick to her head, knocking her onto the ground. "Ugh…!" she groaned in frustration, hitting the ground with her fist before getting up onto her feet. She leapt at Ozpin to throw out a left cross, but he ducked from that as well to her surprise. Before she could react, he retaliated with a headbutt to her chin from below.

"Ouch…" Nora uttered as she and Jaune winced. Erza lightly chuckled as she stepped forward.

" **The next time you want to throw a left cross,** remember to push off with the appropriate foot," Ozpin instructed, "And as always, do be aware of any openings," he added.

"Gotttt it…" Ruby replied in a strained voice, trying to sit up.

"There we go," Erza said as she lifted her back onto her feet, "I'd say you're getting better with close combat," she noted, "But of course, you need to understand that opponents who are more used to it will have an advantage," she told her.

"Right…" Ruby agreed with a nod. She remembered previous times she had been unable to use her Crescent Rose in battle. Whether it was Mercury Black, Roman Torchwick, or even during her bout against Hancock, she always found herself in a tough position without it. And in each fight, she had either struggled, got lucky, or just lost. Just then, Ozpin's eyes flashed as he relinquished control back to Oscar, who fell to the ground on his knees as he panted.

"Whoa, you okay?!" Starlight asked immediately as she jogged over to him. Ruby and Erza quickly approached as well.

"How is this so exhausting?!" Oscar breathed out, straining to catch his breath.

"Your body isn't used to this kind of training," Ren chimed in, catching their attentions, "not to mention generating a defensive Aura on your own," he added, "It takes intense concentration at first, but in time it will become second nature," he assured to Oscar, "allowing you to deflect attacks and gradually heal your wounds," he mentioned, "After that, you can begin focusing on your Semblance," he instructed, "whatever that may be," he said.

"Semblance?" Oscar uttered out in confusion as he got onto his feet.

"You know!" Nora exclaimed as she suddenly zipped over, much to his surprise, "Like your very own superpower!" she emphasized in simple terms with her hands at her hips, "Everybody's got one," she mentioned, "It's just a matter of finding it and mastering it," she told him, "Ruby moves super-fast, electricity makes me stronger, Ren can mask emotions," she listed off, "and Jaune... can, uh, um…" she trailed off, unsure of how to phrase her teammate's situation with his Semblance, "Hmm…" she hummed ashamedly. Starlight looked over in surprise at Jaune, who rubbed the back of his neck as he turned away.

"I can't do anyth—"

"Jaune's like you!" Ruby interjected suddenly, taking Oscar by his left wrist and leading him over, "He hasn't found his Semblance yet, but we all know he will," she assured confidently, "And you will, too," she added to Oscar, "We all just have to try and help each other get stronger," she told them. Erza smiled, glad that Ruby was being optimistic.

"And you got us," Starlight mentioned as she walked over, "Training's a lot better when you've got people with experience," she noted.

"Cool," Oscar responded with a simple shrug.

"A common philosophy is that a warrior's Semblance is a part of who they are," Ren noted, chiming into the conversation, "Some say your personality and character can define your Semblance while some claim that it is the other way around," he explained, "Of course, there are still many who don't see a connection at all," he added.

"It's hard to know when you _know_ sometimes," Nora pointed out, "Ren's Semblance was unlocked from intense stress," she recalled.

"And mine kicked in during training one day," Ruby mentioned.

"And what about you?" Oscar asked, looking over at Nora.

"Oh, struck by lightning. Didn't die," she responded simply, making Starlight widen her eyes, " _Craaaazy_ Thursday," she remarked.

"…Damn," Starlight uttered out.

"I just don't understand what's wrong with me," Jaune grumbled with a shake of his head as Ren stood up, "I train… I meditate…" he listed off in frustration. At that moment, Oscar's eyes glowed momentarily as Ozpin had taken control.

" **Don't worry, Mr. Arc,** " he assured, catching his attention as his hands were together behind his back, "Your journey is far from over," he pointed, "And the same might be said for all of you," he mentioned to the others, "Unlocking your Semblance isn't the end," he noted, "It can still grow and evolve," he told them, "Providing you're willing to put in the work, who knows what could happen…" he finished with a grin.

"Then let's get back to it," Ruby eagerly replied, letting off a confident smile.

"Phoo…" Smoker exhaled with a puff of smoke. He dropped his cigar from his mouth, stomping it out onto the ground with his right foot. "Arc, Ren, with me," he instructed suddenly as he stepped forward, catching their attentions.

"Uh, f-for what?" Jaune stammered. Smoker narrowed his eyes.

"What do you think, blondie?" he retorted in question.

"O-Oh, right!" Jaune responded with a stutter as he and Ren walked out onto the open field of the backyard.

"Don't bother holding back, got it?" Smoker advised to the two aspiring huntsmen.

"Yes, sir," Ren immediately replied. He then rushed the former marine, trying to land a few midair kicks. Smoker blocked them with his arms, retaliating with a right hook that his foe narrowly ducked from.

"Whoa," Nora uttered in surprise, seeing Ren slide through the wickets of Smoker's legs, trying to elbow him from behind. However, the former marine took notice, pivoting around and grabbing his arm with his left hand, followed by landing a powerful punch to his chest.

"Agh…" he groaned upon hitting the ground, lying on his back.

"Oof…" Starlight uttered with a wince. Jaune gulped.

"Come on, Arc," Smoker beckoned, "I ain't got all day to teach some newbies…" he grumbled. Taking some offense to that remark, Jaune put on a serious expression, balling his fists as he charged at the former marine. His punches were easily parried and blocked though, followed by Smoker landing several blows to his stomach as he had left himself wide open.

"Ah-ho!" he grunted out as he fell to the ground on his back, "That… should've gone better…" he muttered out with a pained groan.

"Didn't realize Smoker was so good at this…" Nora noted with narrowed eyes.

"He's trained for a long time, you know," Erza chimed in, noticing Jaune and Ren slowly getting back to their feet, "Longer than any of us," she mentioned as the two aspiring huntsmen started to attack Smoker again. He was on the defensive, blocking Jaune's punches and parrying Ren's kicks. At one point, the latter of the two got behind him, managing to land a kick that sent him careening forward towards Jaune. He smirked, readying his right fist for an uppercut. But Smoker saw it coming, planting his left foot down to keep his balance and grabbing Jaune by his arm, throwing him over his shoulder into Ren as the two crashed into the ground.

"Yikes…!" Nora whispered out with a wince.

"You're doin' all right, Ren," Smoker commented, pulling out a cigar from his jacket, "Arc, you need work," he bluntly noted.

"Ugh…" the blonde teen groaned as he rolled off of his friend. Starlight couldn't help but giggle.

"So, are you ladies up for a spar?" Erza inquired to Nora and Ruby.

"Uh…" the latter of the two uttered out nervously, still a little tired from being beaten by Ozpin. But before she could say no…

"Are we ever?!" Nora exclaimed excitedly, "Let's do this, Ruby!" she yelled, dragging her off in a yelp. Starlight went over with them.

"Miss Scarlet," Ozpin said, catching her attention before she could join the ladies, "a word, please," he requested. Erza arched an eyebrow. What could this be about?

"Starlight, give me a moment," she advised as she walked off to the side with Ozpin.

"Don't worry, Erza!" the once-unicorn replied as she waggled her fingers excitedly, "I can handle a two-on-one…" she remarked confidently.

"And no magic," Erza added sternly.

"Ugh!" Starlight groaned emphatically, "Fine…" she muttered, now less enthusiastic about sparring. In the meantime, Erza and Ozpin stood by, watching the sparring matches continue.

"What's on your mind, sir?" the scarlet haired mage asked curiously. Ozpin crossed his arms.

"I've been wondering, where is Gaara at the moment?" he asked her back. She blinked in surprise.

"Likely home in his universe…" she responded, "Were… you expecting him?" she wondered aloud.

"Yes," the headmaster replied, "He and I kept in close contact during the time he was at Beacon overseeing Miss Xiao Long and acting as security during the Vytal Festival with his squadron," he explained to her, "Of course… because of what happened then," he continued, "I fear he feels that he's inadequate in protecting us," he noted with a worried look. Erza gave off a solemn expression. Gaara was a shoe-in candidate for the Omni Force. Ben knew him very well and realized he was capable of being an excellent squadron leader. And apparently, he made quite the girlfriend in Yang, whose personality seemed to get him out of his shell… so to speak. So with everything that had happened at Beacon... he definitely was affected by it.

"I'm certain Gaara does feel guilty about everything," Erza pointed out with her arms folded underneath her chest, "But I doubt he'll be giving in so easily," she mentioned, sounding confident.

"Heh," Ozpin chuckled, "You're a very assured woman, Miss Scarlet," he noted, making her giggle.

"Please, call me Erza," she requested. Meanwhile, Starlight was parrying blows from Nora, obviously struggling as the redhead was pushing her back. Suddenly, Ruby came in from behind and landed a sweeping kick to her legs to knock her off her feet.

"Oof!" she grunted as she hit the ground on her back.

"Ha, ha!" Ruby laughed triumphantly, "How's that?!" she remarked… right before suddenly getting swept off of her own feet by a kick from Erza, who grabbed her by her cloak to keep her from hitting the ground. She held the tip of a sword close to the girl's face, making her flinch in fright.

"…We also need to work on your… taunting habits…" she noted, pulling her blade back with a smile. Ruby gulped.

"R-Right…" she stuttered out with a nervous chuckle before being pulled back onto her feet. Ozpin grinned as he watched the aspiring huntsmen and huntresses spar with the Omni Force members. Would they be ready in time? From the looks of today, they had a lot of work to do… but he was confident they'd get it done.

 **X**

A few of the bruised and roughed up bandits followed Yang as she was entering the tribe's campground. She had reclaimed her coat tails and sleeve beforehand, noticing more bandits around lining up along the path she walked. They each gave off angered glares at her, likely upset that she hurt their comrades. She didn't care.

Having overhead the commotion, Vernal stepped out of her tent. She gave off a confused look upon noticing Yang, wondering why she was here. The two bandits nearby Weiss' cage were playing cards upon a crate before noticing the blonde woman entering their camp. They quickly ran off. Upon noticing this, Weiss smirked in realization. She turned around and closed her eyes, summoning a small armored knight over the palms of her hands. It jumped off of the glyph onto the ground, turning and readying its sword before attempting to slash at the bars. Yang and her escorts walked further down the camp until they arrived at the largest tent at the end. Everyone gathered around. Yang took a few steps closer to the tent. She narrowed her eyes, waiting for whoever was inside to come out. There were finally footsteps. And the tent flap shifted slightly as a figure emerged. Wearing her Grimm-like mask was Raven Branwen. It seemed as if she looked surprised by her body language once she saw her daughter.

"Mom," Yang uttered, resting her robotic hand onto her hip. Raven removed her mask.

"Yang," she said with a light grin, putting her mask down onto a crate, "So," she continued, "after all this time you finally decided to visit me…" she muttered out while sauntering forward along the porch of her tent, placing her left hand at her hip. Yang's left hand was trembling again. She grabbed at her with her robotic hand, calming her extremity down as it balled into a fist.

"You _know_ that I searched for you," she responded, "I spent _years_ looking for you," she emphasized with anger in her tone.

"And you've found me," Raven noted in reply, "You were patient, determined, and strong enough to make your dream a reality," she listed off, sounding impressed, "Well done, Yang," she complimented, "But did you have to be so rough with my men?" she inquired with a smirk.

"I didn't _want_ a fight," her daughter answered, "They started it," she pointed out, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Well, you certainly finished it," Raven remarked jokingly. Yang didn't laugh. She looked annoyed. And an uncomfortable silence filled the air. "Right," Raven uttered in realization, "I'm sure this is all very overwhelming," she noted, gesturing toward her tribesmen, "But I must admit that you've proven yourself," she confessed, "So any questions you have I'll be happy to answer," she offered to her daughter, "You can stay with us tonight," she added as she took a few more steps forward, "I'll even have the cooks whip up something for you," she mentioned.

"That's not why I am here," Yang responded defiantly, causing her mother to frown. Murmuring began amongst the bandits, who were somewhat shocked by Yang's irreverence.

"What was that?" Raven questioned out of annoyance with her arms crossed.

"I'm not here for you," Yang repeated in response, "Ruby is somewhere in Mistral," she told her mother, "She's with Qrow, and she's going to need my help," she pointed out as she clenched her left fist, "I just need _you_ to take me to her," she stated, putting her hands at her hips.

"And why would I do that?" Raven questioned back.

"Because we're family," Yang replied, giving off an innocent grin as she placed her hands over her chest. Her mother scowled.

"Family…" she muttered, "Only coming around when they need something…" she grumbled, sauntering off to the side for a moment, "I have to say, I'm disappointed," she admitted, projecting her voice again, "After all, you found me, didn't you?" she guessed rhetorically, gesturing towards herself, "Why not take that drive and use it to find your little sister if she means _that much_ to you?" she wondered aloud.

"Because you're going to save me time," Yang answered, placing her left hand back onto her hip, "Ruby was heading to Mistral," she noted, "but there's no guarantee she's made it there," she pointed out with a slight shake of her head, "Looking for her in Anima could take ages," she added as emphasis to her point, "But…" she continued, letting off a smirk, "Dad told me how your Semblance works," she said.

"Tai…: Raven grumbled under her breath.

"You can bond to certain people," her daughter noted, "And when you do, you could create a portal that takes you straight to them," she explained while crossing her arms, "You've got one for Dad. One for me. And you've got _one_ for Qrow," she listed off with a smirk, all while her mother frowned in frustration, "He promised me he'd watch out for Ruby before he left," she mentioned as Raven turned to fully face her, "And I trust him," she added, "So," she continued, "make a portal to my uncle and sister," she requested, "and I'll be on my way," she promised.

"You know… it takes real strength to march in here and demand such a favor of me," her mother told her in response, "I've got to say, I'm impressed," she admitted, "It's very noble to want to help out your sister," she mentioned, sauntering off to the side, "But if she's with Qrow," she kept going, "then she's already a lost cause," she said, placing her right hand onto the hilt of her weapon.

"What does that mean?" Yang asked as her mother blinked.

"You don't want to get mixed up in all of that, Yang," she advised, "Ozpin is not the man you think he is," she mentioned with narrowed eyes, "And Qrow is a fool for trusting him," she added in a tone of disdain, "I would know," she said, turning to her daughter, "I trusted him once, too," she told her.

"I don't care what you think," Yang responded defiantly with a wave of her robotic arm. Murmuring began again amongst the tribesmen, while Vernal, holding Myrtenaster against the ground, looked on disdainfully as she put her right hand onto her hip.

"Your choice is your own," Raven assured, "All I'm suggesting is that instead of getting wrapped up in something _too big_ for you," she began to say as she sauntered back to the front of her tent, "for any of us," she added, "that maybe you take a moment to wonder if you're already where you belong," she suggested as she came to a stop.

"Save your breath," her daughter said, "You could spout off whatever you want…" she admitted, "but nothing is going to keep me from my sister," she declared firmly as her teeth were clenched a little. Raven was slightly taken aback by the remarks, grasping Omen's hilt again with her left hand.

"Well, aren't you stubborn…" she muttered out aloud with a fake grin.

"I get it from my mom," Yang retorted, crossing her arms afterwards. If there wasn't a standoff before, there was one now. Tension was growing between the tribe leader and her daughter, all while the rest of the bandits around them watched on.

"Well, if that's how you feel," Raven began, breaking the ice of the silence, "then it sounds like we're done here," she confirmed, "Take her away," she requested of the tribesmen, turning around to head back into her tent. Some of the bandits moved in on Yang, surrounding her. She noticed this, putting her arms down in surprise.

"Did you not hear me?!" she shouted to her mother with clenched teeth, enticing her to turn back around just as she was about to open the tent flap, "I said send me to Qrow, damn it!" she demanded angrily as her irises turned red with rage.

"That's enough!" the ponytailed bandit shouted, catching her attention, "You watch your mouth in front of our leader!" he bellowed. Some of the bandits tensed up behind him though, not wanting to invoke Yang's wrath from the look of their already beaten comrades. But others steeled themselves, readying their weapons.

"…Make me," Yang remarked in response. Sharing a look with his comrade, the ponytailed bandit let out a battle cry as he charged towards her. He leapt up, preparing to slice through her neck with his blade… but was suddenly stopped.

"AH!" he yelped. Something had caught him by his neck, holding him above the ground. And it wasn't Yang. A shocked murmuring began amongst the bandits as it seemed like their comrade was being held by nothing but the air as he tried to flail his way free. And then, a pair of angelic amber wings appeared. Raven blinked in astonishment. Standing there and holding her tribesman with just her left hand was Sunset, ponied up with her pony ears, long ponytail, and light amber skin apparent upon her form.

"My turn," she remarked, making her right fist glow a bright reddish-amber before she punched the bandit fiercely, sending him flying through a few nearby tents as he crashed into the wall beyond them. He let out a pained groan, losing consciousness soon after. Everyone was stunned. Even Raven. Yang blinked a couple of times. And then it finally clicked.

"Wait…" she started to realize, "aren't you-?"

"Yang?" a voice uttered out from afar, interjecting her as she turned to her left and gasped to Weiss there, still in her cage, though her wrists were no longer bound.

"Weiss?!" Yang gasped in surprise. Everyone else present looked surprised at the fact the two girls seemed to know each other. Sunset arched an eyebrow towards Raven.

"Wanna fill us in?" she guessed, crossing her arms over her chest.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" someone suddenly screamed from, causing everyone to perk up. Left and right, bandits found their arms and legs getting suddenly sliced off. To their shock though, they weren't bleeding out at all.

"Weiss!" Danny screamed as he flew about in his ghost form, having arrived at the camp alongside Law, "Where are you?!" he cried out. The whole situation had gotten completely out of hand.

"Alright, well, subtlety is out…" Weiss realized with a shake of her head. She knelt down and turned to her miniature summon, who planted its sword into the ground as it knelt as well. It then grew exponentially, ripping the ceiling off of the cage and splintering the bars.

"There she is," Law remarked with a grin as he knocked out a bandit by smacking him with the hilt of his sword. Weiss and her summoned knight ran over to Yang and Sunset, gathering with the pirate and the half-ghost teen as well. The five of them stood back-to-back as they stared down the tribe.

"Glad to see you're alright, Weiss," Danny noted with a grin.

"Well, not completely…" she remarked in response as she rolled her eyes.

"What is that?" Yang asked, glancing up at the summoned knight.

"Don't worry about it," Weiss whispered back, "What are you doing here?!" she asked quietly.

"Well, that's my mom and she can take us to Ruby," Yang responded, gesturing towards Raven.

"Ugh…" she groaned in frustration. Weiss blinked before widening her eyes.

"Your _mom_ kidnapped me?!" she exclaimed incredulously. Yang widened her eyes.

"You kidnapped her?!" she yelled at Raven. The remaining bandits started shouting, catching their attentions as they were closing in on the group.

"What do you wanna do, Shimmer?" Law asked, readying his blade.

"Guess we gotta fight…" she replied with a shrug.

"Phantom, get those two outta here," he advised to the half-ghost teen, "We'll catch up," he promised, forming a sphere of blue energy underneath his right palm.

"Got it," Danny replied, taking Weiss' hand. But as he tried to grab Yang's, she pulled away.

"No, we gotta stay!" she shouted, "My mom can get us where we need to go!" she pointed out vehemently.

"Jeez…" Law muttered out, "so you got stuck with keeping an eye on her, huh?" he inquired to Sunset.

"Hey, she was the only one not taken," she responded with a shake of her head.

"Huh?" Yang uttered in confusion, arching in eyebrow. All of a sudden, more bandits charged them.

"Room!" Law exclaimed, making the sphere under his palm expand outward, containing the oncoming bandits. He then drew his blade, dashing forward and slashing past a few of them, slicing their bodies half completely. Sunset threw her hands out and fired beams of golden light that struck them along with others, knocking them onto the ground. Yang was a bit surprised. These two who she had never met before were mowing through the bandits like they were nothing.

"We need to go!" Danny yelled as he quickly fired off an icy blue beam of light onto the ground, freezing it to make the oncoming bandits slip and fall over in yelps.

"Yang!" Weiss shouted, trying to get her friend to listen. However, she instead decided to rush off to the side to face off with the bandits. All of a sudden though, a lightning bolt appeared out of nowhere and struck the ground in front of her with a fierce boom of thunder. Everyone stopped. They turned to see that Vernal appeared to have fired off the bolt.

" _Enough!_ " she bellowed with a loud echo. With that, Law flipped his hand.

"Shambles," he uttered. In an instant, every bandit that had been sliced up was put back together, much to their shock as they looked themselves over to see they were mostly uninjured. Sunset let her wings, ponytail, pony ears, and amber skin all disappear from her form in a flash of light, while the blue half-sphere of space vanished as well. The others looked out at Vernal, and Danny noticed Myrtenaster in her hand.

"I'll take her," he remarked in challenge, letting go of Weiss' hand as he stepped forward.

"Wait," Sunset chimed in, enticing Danny to stop. She walked over and put her hands on her hips as she looked at Raven. "Don't want any collateral damage, right?" she guessed to her. She scoffed.

"Thank you," she said to Vernal, seeing that everyone had stopped shouting and panicking, "If you people don't keep it together this place will be crawling with Grimm," she reprimanded to her tribesmen, "Give the girl her weapon back," she advised to Vernal, who seemed surprised by the order as she looked back at her leader. Law picked up a rock lying on the ground.

"Room," he uttered, forming another spherical space of blue energy that expanded outward, "Shambles," he said, flipping his hand.

"Huh?!" Vernal yelped in surprise, seeing that she now had a rock in her hand, and Law had Myrtenaster in his.

"Here, Schnee," he said, tossing her the weapon as she caught it with her right hand.

"So now what?" Sunset asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

"All of you. In my tent. Now," she demanded in an aggressive tone. They glared back at her.

"Why?" Yang asked, keeping her fists clenched.

"…If you're really going after your sister," Raven started to reply, "then you need to know the truth," she told them.

"Hey, so long as it helps not bruise your ego," Sunset quipped as a response, causing the tribe leader to glare at her. She turned around and walked back into her tent. The bandits walked away as well, deciding to mind their own business and let their leader handle things. As Vernal walked by, she shot Danny a look, which he returned as he balled his fists.

"Did she even use a weapon?" he wondered, recalling that powerful lightning strike she apparently performed.

"Probably figured out how to use Schnee's," Law replied as he walked up to his teammate's side, "At any rate, we found her," he mentioned with a grin, which Danny happily returned with a chuckle. Weiss placed her hand over her chest out of relief.

"Sorry about-" Before Yang could finish her apology, Weiss dropped Myrtenaster and leapt into her arms, strongly hugging her. She was definitely surprised. Normally it'd be her sister having that kind of reaction…

"I missed you so much!" Weiss exclaimed in a breaking voice. Yang smiled.

"I've missed you, too," she responded, putting her hand on the back of her teammate's head, embracing her warmly. Meanwhile, the summoned night disappears like sparkling snowflakes flowing with the wind. Sunset picked up Myrtenaster and trotted over to Danny and Law.

"Nice to see reunions, huh?" she guessed to them.

"Heh, yeah," Law chuckled in response. And at that moment, it finally clicked. He widened his eyes as he saw her beside him, grinning like she used to. She understood as she laughed.

"Hey," she greeted.

"…Hey yourself…" Law retorted with a chuckle. Their reunions were bound to be the start of many…

 **END**

 **NegaiFreak: Huh… And I got this done right before the new Volume 7 episode…**

 **Ruby Rose: NO SPOILERS! *tackles him***

 **Blake Belladonna: Okay… Anyways, we'll be taking a break from "RWBY: Omni Force" for the next chapter of "The Challenge of a Lifetime".**

 **Ben Tennyson: If you wanna know what's coming up this year, you check the schedule out in the Omni Force Forum linked in NF's profile page.**

 **Yang Xiao Long: So until next time guys, see ya!**


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